1 . Have you watched news on TV or read newspaper recently? It has been a difficult time for people in California, US during the past month. As we all know, wildfires have spread through much of the state. According to CBS, at least 31 people have died so far. This makes them the most terrible wildfires in California so far.

Wildfires are uncontrolled fires. They usually happen in areas where few people live. They are most common in wooden areas in the US, Canada and Australia. They are also known as forest fires or grass fires, or as bushfires in Australia.

Lightning and volcanic eruptions(火山爆发) can cause wildfires. However, 90 % of wildfires are caused by people. According to the US National Park Service, burning campfires and garbage debris(碎片), cigarette butts and acts of arson(纵火) can easily cause wildfires.

Dry and hot weather, as well as wind, creates perfect wildfire conditions. They help wildfires spread quickly and last for weeks.

Wildfires can burn at over 900℃ and reach heights of more than 50 metres. Wildfires can move at a speed of up to 23 kilometres an hour, burning everything — trees, bushes, homes, even people, in their path.

The fires are also dangerous to animals. In Australia, koalas can’t get enough water from tree leaves because of wildfires. They have to leave their trees and find water somewhere else.

But sometimes, fires can be helpful for some plants. Heat from the fires makes some fungi (真菌), such as morel mushrooms(羊肚蘑), grow better. People can find more of them in the wild after a fire.

Hope that wildfires will never happen again.

1. According to the writer, which of the following can NOT cause wildfires?

A．Lightning and volcanic eruptions.	B．Burning campfires and cigarette butts.
C．Acts of arson.	D．Cooking meals at home.

2. Which is NOT true to describe wildfires?

A．Wildfires usually happen in areas where many people live.

B．Wildfires can burn at over 900℃.

C．Wildfires reach heights of more than 50 metres.

D．Wildfires can move at a speed of up to 23 kilometres an hour.

3. The heat of wildfires is helpful to ________.

A．people

B．animals

C．trees

D．morel mushrooms

4. What’s the best title of the passage?

A．The Terrible Wildfires	B．The Reasons of Wildfires
C．The Advantages of Wildfires	D．The Disadvantages of Wildfires

5. You may find the passage in ________.

A．a novel

B．a magazine

C．a diary

D．a textbook

2 . 阅读下面短文，根据短文内容完成句子。

Typhoons in the northern part of the world have girls’ names. Sometimes they have very beautiful names. Rose is a pretty name but there was nothing pretty about Typhoon Rose. It was the worst typhoon to hit Hong Kong in fifty years.

It began to rain on the morning of Monday, August 16^th, 1971. At ten o’clock in the morning, Typhoon Rose was still 130 miles away but the wind was already blowing people’s umbrella away. The wind became stronger and stronger. The typhoon shelters（避难所） were soon full of boats. Ships that were too big to go inside the shelters put down more anchors（锚）. Some very big ships went out to sea. It is safer for a big ship to be at sea in a typhoon because it cannot be blown onto rocks. Kai Tak Airport closed. No planes were able to take off or land. At 9:00 in the evening, all the lights went out. No one slept well that night. It was difficult to sleep in such bad weather.

In Typhoon Rose, more than one hundred people died. 229 people were hurt and 66 of these had to go to hospital. 1,500 lost their homes. The people of Hong Kong will remember Typhoon Rose forever.

1. Typhoon Rose was the worst typhoon to hit _________ in 50 years.
2. When the wind became stronger and stronger, the typhoon shelters were_________with boats.
3. It was not easy for people _________ in such bad weather when Typhoon Rose came.
4. In Typhoon Rose, more than 100 people died and 1,500_________.
5. The people of Hong Kong will never_________Typhoon Rose.

3 . 听一段材料，回答下面几个小 题。
1. Where did the storm happen?

A．In the UK.

B．In the USA.

C．In China.

2. What does Mr Smith do?

A．He’s a doctor.

B．He’s a teacher.

C．He’s a farmer.

3. Why did Mr Smith go back to his house?

A．Because he wanted to find his child.

B．Because his wife got hurt.

C．Because he wanted to get some food.

4 . 根据短文内容及首字母提示，填写所缺单词，使短文意思完整。每空限填一词。

Why so many fires?

California is burning! Wildfires have spread across the US State since Oct 23 and smoke has filled its skies.

Take the Kincade Fire in northern California for example. It forced ( 迫 使 ) 200,000 people to e    1    its path within one   week. The state’s largest power (电力) company cut power to about 206,000 homes in order to s    2     more fires from breaking out, CBS News reported.

California has seen many wildfires in recent years. Nine of the 10 biggest fires have happened since 2000, i    3    five since 2010, according to The New York Times.

Why is this? California has the perfect wildfire   c    4    , Park Williams,   a   US climate expert (气候专家), told The New York Times. It has dry air and high temperatures from spring through late fall. At the same time, seasonal winds blow across the state every year, causing the wildfires to spread q    5    and last for weeks.

Global warming has also made the fires worse in recent years. It has dried out the state’s trees and o    6     plant life, causing them to burn more easily.

H     7    have played a role as well. Burning campfires, garbage debris ( 碎 片 ),and cigarette butts (烟头) can easily cause wildfires. For example, one fire started last year when a car got a flat tire (漏气的轮胎). The car’s body met the road and sent out sparks (火花 ), starting a f    8    .

Lightning strikes (雷击) and volcanic eruptions (火山爆发) can also cause wildfires. However, people have caused 90 percent of California’s wildfires, according to the US National Park Service.

More about wildfires

Wildfires often happen in wooded areas in the US, Canada and Australia. They are also k     9     as forest fires or grass fires in Australia.

Wildfires can burn at over 900℃ and reach heights of more than 50 meters. They can move at speeds of up to 23 kilometers an hour, burning e    10     – trees, brush, homes, even people – in their path.