"characteristics" means "attributes" or "qualities"?

The passage:
Chicago, for example, possesses an almost
10) unparalleled situation: it is located at the southern end of a huge lake that forces east-west
transportation lines to be compressed into its vicinity, and at a meeting of significant land
and water transport routes. It also overlooks what is one of the world’s finest large
farming regions. These factors ensured that Chicago would become a great city regardless
of the disadvantageous characteristics of the available site, such as being prone to flooding
15) during thunderstorm activity.

The word “characteristics” in line 14 is closest in meaning to
(A) choices
(B) attitudes
(C) qualities
(D) inhabitants

I chose B "attributes" but the answer is C. "quality". According to Oxford dictionary:
attribute: a quality or feature of sth/sb
characteristic: a typical feature or quality that sth has
quality: the feature of sth, especially one that makes different from sth else

I find no difference between the three words. Please tell me why "qualities" is the answer. Thanks in advance!

The answer B is attitudes, not attributes.

But I also like attributes better than qualities, as it is more general. Qualitites are often perceived as virtues, whereas attributes are just plain old traits.