4 . “Fire! Fire!” What terrible words to hear when one ______ in a strange house in the middle of night! It was a large, old ______ house — the sort that burns easily, and my room was on the top floor. I jumped out of bed, ______ the door and stepped out into the passage. It was full of thick smoke.

I began to ______ , but as I was still only half-awake, instead of going towards the stairs I went in the opposite direction. The smoke grew thicker and I found it hard to ______ . The floor became ______ under my bare feet. I ran into another room and tried to reach the ______ for fresh air. But before I could reach it, one of my feet got caught in something soft and I fell down. The thing I had fell over felt like a bundle of clothes, and I picked it up to protect my ______ from the smoke and heat. Just then the door ______ under me and I dashed to the floor below with pieces of ______ wood all around me.

______ , there was a doorway in front, so I put the package over my face and ran. My feet were terribly burned, but I got through. As I reached the cold air outside, my bundle of clothes gave a thin ______ . I nearly dropped it in my ______ . Then I saw many people gathered in the street. A woman dressed in night clothes screamed as she saw me and came running ______ .

“My baby! My baby!” She cried. The crowd ______ loudly as she took the smoke-blackened bundle out of my arms. I almost failed to see who she was — my boss wife. I had saved her baby, and became a hero.

5 . Joe Simpson and Simon Yates were the first people to climb the West Face of the Siula Grande in the Andes mountains. They reached the top _______, but on their way back conditions were very _______. Joe fell and broke his leg. They both knew that if Simon _______ alone, he would probably get back safely. But Simon decided to risk his _______ and try to lower Joe down the mountain on a rope (绳).

As they _______ down, the weather got worse. Then another _______ occurred. They couldn’t see or hear each other and, by mistake, Simon lowered his friend over the edge of a precipice (峭壁). It was _______ for Joe to climb back or for Simon to pull him up. Joe’s _______ was pulling Simon slowly towards the precipice. Finally, after more than an hour in the dark and the icy cold, Simon had to _______. In tears, he cut the rope. Joe ________ into a huge crevasse (裂缝) in the ice below. He had no food or water and he was in terrible pain. He couldn’t walk, but he ________ to get out of the crevasse and started to________ towards their camp, nearly ten kilometers away.

Simon had returned to the camp at the foot of the mountain. He thought that Joe must be ________, but he didn’t want to leave ________. Three days later, in the middle of the night, he heard Joe’s voice. He couldn’t ________ it. Joe was there, a few meters from their tent, still alive.

10 . Philip was looking out of the windows while his grandchildren were playing around the house. “Look!” One child shouted ________. Philip looked up only to see a small plane a few hundred yards away, losing altitude. As a(n) ________ Navy commander, he realized it was going to ________ in the icy river.

Philip didn’t hesitate. He ________ down to the waterfront. The plane had slid to a river far from shore and was now sinking. The ________ was standing on the wing. Philip knew from his Navy training that even a few moments in the icy water could ________ the pilot. Philip tested the ice with his foot and decided not to risk ________ on it. So he and his son, Michael pulled two canoes (皮划艇) out from their back deck. The two men set off, ________ their boats across the ice. It was tough work.

When Philip reached the plane, it had broken through the ice and ________, with only its tail stable. With his son nearby, Philip focused on keeping the pilot ________, joking, “Just hang on to the boat as if you were hugging your wife.” The pilot ________ grabbed the paddle and the two men were floating together, but Philip knew he had to get the pilot onto the shelf of unbroken ice before the man lost too much body ________. Just at that time a ________ appeared and radioed for help (用无线电呼救). After a while, a rescue boat arrived to help the policeman, breaking through ice. It ________ the pilot and rushed him to safety. Philip recalled. “I’m 60 years old,” he says. “There was no way I could get him to shore.” Still, he was ________ he’d gone the right way that day.