VOA慢速英语--在树林里发现的一个小男孩说他和熊一起'闲逛'

Little Boy Found in Woods Says He ‘Hung Out’ with Bear

A 3-year-old boy who was lost in the woods for two days is now safe at home with his family. But Casey Hathaway told his rescuers that he was not alone in the rainy, freezing cold woods. He said he was with a friend – a bear.

The child went missing¹ on January 22 while playing with friends at his grandmother’s house in the southern state of North Carolina. When the other children returned to the house and Casey did not, the family searched the area for almost an hour before calling the police.

Police formed a search and rescue team to look for the young boy in the nearby woods. But two days went by and still -- no Casey.

Then on January 24, someone called the police saying they heard a child crying in the woods. Police followed up on the information and found Casey at about 9:30 that night. They pulled him out of some briar. He was in good health.

Casey told the rescuers that he had hung out with a black bear for two days, a bear he called his “friend.”

Sheriff Chip Hughes spoke² with reporters from several news agencies³. He said Casey did not say how he was able to survive in the woods for three days in the cold, rainy weather. However, the sheriff said, “He did say he had a friend in the woods that was a bear that was with him.”

Hundreds of people helped in the search and rescue efforts, including some 600 volunteers, federal⁴ police and members of the military⁵. Officer Hughes told reporters that at no point did he think Casey had been kidnapped.

Doctors at Carolina East Medical Center treated Casey for minor⁶ injuries. He was then released⁷ to his family on January 25.

His mother Brittany Hathaway talked with reporters from a local news agency⁸ and thanked everyone who joined the search for her son.

"We just want to tell everybody that we're very thankful that you took the time out to come search for Casey and prayed for him, and he's good," said his mother. "He is good, he is up and talking. He's already asked to watch Netflix. So, he's good..."

I’m Ashley Thompson.

Words in this Story

hung out – phrasal verb⁹ : to spend time in a certain place or in certain company

briar – n. a plant (as the rose or blackberry) with a thorny or prickly stem

1 missing   

adj.遗失的，缺少的，失踪的

参考例句：

• Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具，看有无丢失。
• All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了，就短他一个。

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 agencies   

n.代理( agency的名词复数 )；服务机构；（政府的）专门机构；代理（或经销）业务（或关系）

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations. 联合国有许多专门机构。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The project is funded by the World Bank and other multilateral agencies. 这项计划由世界银行和其他多国机构资助。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 federal   

adj.联盟的；联邦的；(美国)联邦政府的

参考例句：

• Switzerland is a federal republic.瑞士是一个联邦共和国。
• The schools are screaming for federal aid.那些学校强烈要求联邦政府的援助。

5 military   

n.军队；adj.军事的，军人的，好战的

参考例句：

• The area has been declared a closed military zone.这个地区已宣布为军事禁区。
• The king was just the tool of the military government.国王只是军政府的一个傀儡。

6 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

7 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。

8 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

9 verb   

n.[语]动词

参考例句：

• The sentence is formed from a verb and two nouns.这句子由一个动词和两个名词构成。
• These are the finite forms of a verb.这些是一个动词的限定形式。