英语听力精选进阶版 14274

BBC Learning English

Video Words in the News 

3 July 2013

Forest fires hit the US

Transcript¹:

Fire eats up the forest in Arizona. 

This is the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the US for 30 years. 

The blaze spread rapidly amid high heat, low humidity and windy conditions. 

Helicopters and planes tried to douse² flames from above. Thousands of people have been evacuated³. 

As some American states experience extreme temperatures and drought, meteorologists have warned that more forest fires may hit California and New Mexico. 

Vocabulary:

wildfire

fire that spreads rapidly and uncontrollably

amid

surrounded by

douse 

extinguish (a fire)

evacuated

taken away (from a difficult or dangerous situation or place)

meteorologists

professionals who analyse weather conditions

Exercise:

Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from news reports. 

Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.

wildfire / amid / douse / evacuated / meteorologists

1.  TV pictures showed chaotic⁴ scenes as crowds swarmed⁵ the crash site, some helping⁶ pass along hoses to __________ the smoking wreckage⁷. 

2.  A smaller area is ablaze⁸ on Tenerife. On the mainland, two firefighters died while helping to extinguish a __________ in Torremanzanas, a village north of the eastern coastal⁹ town of Alicante.

3.  The severe weather is also affecting neighbouring Bulgaria and Romania, where six people have reportedly died. __________ warn that the cold snap in the region could continue and temperatures may drop even further.

4.  The manufacturing and export sectors¹⁰ have been key drivers of China's economic growth in recent years. However, they have been under pressure lately __________ a slowdown in key export markets as well as China's own economic growth.

5.  The quake caused buildings to sway in Tijuana, where Easter celebrations were interrupted as families rushed for open ground. There were power cuts and hospitals and public buildings were __________ in Mexico's Baja California state.

Answers:

1.  TV pictures showed chaotic scenes as crowds swarmed the crash site, some helping pass along hoses to douse the smoking wreckage.

2.  A smaller area is ablaze on Tenerife. On the mainland, two firefighters died while helping to extinguish a wildfire in Torremanzanas, a village north of the eastern coastal town of Alicante.

3.  The severe weather is also affecting neighbouring Bulgaria and Romania, where six people have reportedly died. Meteorologists warn that the cold snap in the region could continue and temperatures may drop even further. 

4.  The manufacturing and export sectors have been key drivers of China's economic growth in recent years. However, they have been under pressure lately amid a slowdown in key export markets as well as China's own economic growth.

5.  The quake caused buildings to sway in Tijuana, where Easter celebrations were interrupted as families rushed for open ground. There were power cuts and hospitals and public buildings were evacuated in Mexico's Baja California state. 

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 douse   

v.把…浸入水中，用水泼；n.泼洒

参考例句：

• Men came with buckets of water and began to douse the flames.人们提来一桶桶水灭火。
• He doused the flames with a fire extinguisher.他用灭火器把火焰扑灭。

3 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

4 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

5 swarmed   

密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去

参考例句：

• When the bell rang, the children swarmed out of the school. 铃声一响，孩子们蜂拥而出离开了学校。
• When the rain started the crowd swarmed back into the hotel. 雨一开始下，人群就蜂拥回了旅社。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

8 ablaze   

adj.着火的，燃烧的；闪耀的，灯火辉煌的

参考例句：

• The main street was ablaze with lights in the evening.晚上，那条主要街道灯火辉煌。
• Forests are sometimes set ablaze by lightning.森林有时因雷击而起火。

9 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

10 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》