1 . It was late, about 10:15 pm. Janice Esposito got off the train at Bellport, New York, went to her car and started driving home. She was so familiar with the route that she almost drove automatically: turned left to the Station Road, then another left onto Montauk Highway, and then -bam! When Esposito’s car had just crossed the railroad tracks, it hit another vehicle and was pushed back onto the tracks. Injured but mostly shocked by the crash and by the airbags that popped up, she was stuck in the vehicle.

As it happened, Pete Dipinto was just about to go to sleep when he heard a sharp noise and saw the accident not far outside his bedroom window. As a volunteer firefighter and retired teacher, Dipinto who was 65, fetched a flashlight and rushed out without hesitation. “Any firefighter would have done what I did. We’re always on duty.” he said.

At first, he spoiled the other car in the accident. After making sure that the driver was all right, Dipinto looked around and discovered Esposito’s car straddling (横跨) the railway tracks. And then he heard die bell ring, which signaled a train’s arrival.

Dipinto rushed to Esposito’s car and broke the window on the driver’s side. Esposito looked up at him, with her eyes glazing over, “I don’t know where I am.” she said.

“You’re on the railroad tracks,” Dipinto yelled. “I have to get you off right now!” The train was running toward them at a speed of some 105 kilometers per hour. The driver’s door cannot be opened due to the collision, so Dipinto quickly ran to the other side and managed to open the door. He put the airbags aside, seized her arms, pulled her toward him across the passenger seat until finally got her out and walked her to safety as swiftly as possible. Several seconds later, the train crashed into the vehicle. It was like a Hollywood movie, Dipinto told reporters the next day.

“Last night?” said Gregory Miglino Jr, Chief of the Department in South Country, Ambulance, “the hero arrived in pajamas (睡衣), not in a fire truck.”

4 . Mount Hood is the highest mountain in Oregon, a state in the western United States. At 3, 400 meters it is attractive to many people, some of whom, of course, run into trouble. Each year 25 to 50 people have accidents or get lost on Mount Hood and need rescue（营救）. Although most of these are understandable accidents, a few result from careless risk-taking.

In one recent case, three experienced climbers went hiking in the middle of a snowstorm in December. Most hikers climb Mount Hood in May or June when the weather conditions are good. But in December, the mountain is covered in snow and ice. Winds up to 135 kilometers per hour blow the snow around, making it difficult to see. Temperatures can drop below freezing. As one rescue worker put it, "What were they thinking? They were just asking for it. "

During a rescue a few years ago, a helicopter full of rescue workers crashed and the rescue workers were almost killed. Linda Carle, who lives in the Mount Hood area, asks, If someone made a muddled decision, why should rescue teams have to risk their lives to save them? Why do people take unnecessary risks and do things that aren't right if they know that they can get into trouble? "

Most of the Mount Hood rescue workers are either volunteers or part of the local police department There is no charge for these rescues. It is the taxpayers who pay the bill. Linda Carle suggests that people who take careless risks and need rescue should ay for the rescue. She fees it is only fir that costs for things like damaged helicopters and medical care for rescuers should be paid for by the people who take the risks. What would you do if you were the local police officer at Mount Hood?

5 . The phone rings. It is either for my wife Susan, who’s the only one receiving calls on the home line, or it’s the latest of 300 attempts to sell me something useless.

“Hello,” I say, an edge in my voice.

“Daddy, it’s me.” It’s Alyce, my 12-year-old daughter. “Mommy was in a car accident.”

My heart stops and then begins pounding.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes.”

“Is Mommy?”

A deep sob.

“I don’t know…I don’t think so. Come quick.”

I rush a few blocks to what looks like a shoot for a disaster movie. Fire engines, police cars, and ambulances are randomly parked in the street. A city bus is on the wrong side of the road. In front of it are the torn remains of Susan’s car.

Alyce is covered in tiny pieces of glass but uninjured. Susan isn’t so lucky. But she is alive. She has broken many bones, and spends three months in hospital.

Two years later, Susan and I were at an event at our synagogue (犹太教堂) celebrating Martin Lather King Jr. Our temple’s musical director rushed to us. “There’s a woman here tonight from one of the church choirs who you have to meet!” He returned with an African American woman. She told us she lived in the apartment building by where the accident had happened. That morning, she rushed to the street, and saw Alyce crying. She approached her, asking, “Is that your mom in there?” Alyce nodded, and the woman said, “Let's pray together.” Innocent Alyce looked at this woman wearing a cross around her neck and said, “OK, but you should know I’m Jewish (犹太人).” The woman took Alyce’s hand, held it to her chest, and said, “In here we’re all the same.”

After the accident, she said, she had continued to pray for our family.

We hugged warmly and had our picture taken together. As we were saying goodbye, realizing we had never been formally introduced, she asked me for my name. I told her it was Douglas, and she paused, and then said, “Wait, your name is Susan? And your name is Douglas?” The woman put her hand over her heart. “Oh my goodness,” she said. “My name is Susan Douglas.”

6 . One day, Lisa Holman told her family she would be out that night visiting her friend, only about half an hour drive from her house. So it was not alarming as the night grew on and she did not arrive home. As 11 pm passed, her family began to worry. They called her but did not get any answer. They then reached out to Lisa's friend, who said Lisa had left to drive home at 9 that night.

The family thought about calling the police that evening but the police typically don't define a person missing unless there is no contact for 24 hours. The next morning there was still no sign of Lisa. All the family could do was sit home and wait. Lisa's son decided to drive along Lisa's route and carefully look for her. He found Lisa's car had crashed into a tree. What's worse，there was no sign of Lisa at all.

The family called the police. The police began their search. But due to the heavy rain the search team was called back. The family was very disappointed but still hopeful and continued the search 700 feet from Lisa's car, they finally found Lisa under a rock.

After a few days in hospital, Lisa recovered. She explained that she passed out after her car slid off the road in the rain. After she came to herself, Lisa managed to climb out of the car. While walking to find help, Lisa was exhausted and unable to figure out the direction. So she couldn't walk on and climbed under a rock as it started raining again. Scared as she was, she turned to her faith in hopes of living to see her son again.

7 . It was about 10:15 p.m. Janice Esposito got off the train at the Bellport, New York, got into her car and began driving home. She had traveled the route so many times that she almost drove automatically: a left onto Station Road, then a left on Montauk Highway, and then—bang! Out of nowhere a car crashed into Esposito’s car, pushing her backward some 100 feet onto the railroad tracks. Injured but mostly shocked by the crash and by the airbags that popped up, she got stuck in the vehicle.

As it happened, Pete DiPinto was getting ready for bed when he heard the crash coming from not far outside his bedroom window.

A volunteer firefighter and retired teacher, DiPinto, 64, never stopped to think. He grabbed a flashlight and rushed out. “Any firefighter would have done what I did,” he said. “We’re always on duty. ”

The first car he came upon, 2,000 feet from his front yard, was the one that had hit Esposito. Once making sure the driver was OK, he looked around and spotted Esposito's car straddling (骑跨) the railroad tracks. And then he heard a bell sound, which signaled a coming train.

DiPinto rushed to Esposito’s car and hit on the driver’s side window. She just looked at him, “I don’t know where I am,” she said.

“You’re on the railroad tracks,” DiPinto yelled. “We have to get you off right now!” The train was traveling at a speed of 65 miles per hour toward them. The driver’s door couldn’t be opened due to the crash, so DiPinto ran to the passenger side. He threw open the door, pushed aside the airbags, seized Esposito’s arms, and pulled her toward him across the passenger seat until he finally got her out and walked her to safety as quickly as he could.

Within seconds, the train crashed into the car. “It was like a Hollywood movie, ” DiPinto told reporters the next day.

“Last night, ” said Greg Miglino Chief of the South Country Ambulance, “the hero arrived in pajamas, not in a fire truck. ”

8 . Home fires can happen quickly, destroying lives and property, but unlike other disasters, most home fires can be prevented. Read on to learn 4 unexpected home fire dangers.

An effective smoke alarm can make much difference when it comes to surviving a house fire. It’s not enough to change the batteries twice a year, you also need to replace your alarms every decade. “You should test your smoke alarms every month,” says Lorraine Carli, vice president of the National Fire Protection Association. “But also don’t forget to check the dates and replace an alarm that is more than 10 years old.”

One in five Americans admitted leaving food cooking unattended on the stove, found an American Red Cross survey. Walking away from food cooking in the kitchen is a serious fire risk. “The leading cause of home fires is cooking and the leading cause of those fires is unattended cooking,” says Carli.“If you need to use the stove or oven, be sure to keep an eye on it.”

Turning up the heat too high can be deadly, even if you’re in the kitchen while you cook. Kevin Kelley, senior director of the American Red Cross, recommends paying close attention and turning off the burner if you see smoke or grease (油脂) starting to boil while frying food.

If your stove is covered with grease, a small kitchen fire can get out of hand quickly. Clean and clear the area around the stove before turning on the heat, or the result will be dangerous.

9 . As reported in JAMA Surgery, the researchers discovered that e-scooter(电动摩托车) injury rates had increased dramatically in just four years, rising from 6 per 100,000 in the population to 19 per 100,000. Of the estimated 14,651 e-scooter-related injuries in 2018, 4,658, or 32%, involved the head. “While most people recover from head injuries, there is going to be a subset with long-term disability and life changes,” said Dr. Benjamin Breyer.

Dr. Benjamin Breyer of the University of California, Los Angeles, pointed to a 2019 analysis of the data from two hospitals in Southern California, which found just 4.8% of injured e-scooter riders were wearing helmets.

Dr. Joann Elmore, a professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, believed that most e-scooter users are probably unaware of the risks. To make the point, she described a photo taken by a colleague. “There were two riders on an e-scooter,” she said. “No one had shoes on. There were no helmets. And the woman in front had a baby in a baby carrier.”

The new report highlights the need for more research on new technologies, said Dr. Guohua Li, a professor of epidemiology(流行病学).

“Just as there is a global network of experts working on infectious diseases, there needs to be a similar program devoted to the surveillance(监视，监察) and prevention of injuries caused by merging technologies products and lifestyles, such as e-scooters, e-sports, etc.,” Li said in an email.

“The challenge for researchers and policymakers is to keep up with the ever-changing society and protect the public from unnecessary harm caused by new technologies and products without hindering innovation,” he added.

10 . My two daughters and I got into the car to spend our weekend in Florida. Autumn, the elder one, offered to drive. I sat next to her, and Amber sat in back. After setting off, the three of us sang to the radio at the top of our voice.

It was a great trip until the rain poured and the rain was too heavy. “I have to pull over, ” Autumn said. She tried to enter the far right lane (车道) to find a place to stop, but trucks ran fast, making water onto our car. The car was out of control, then worse — it started to move left and right. Autumn fought to control it but it was too late. We ran into a truck. The girls jumped out of the car. My chest felt much pain.

“Get out, Mom. Come on！” Amber cried. “I can't,” I said. Autumn took out her cellphone, “There's been an accident. Send an ambulance (救护车)！” Amber and Autumn pulled me out of the car and helped me lie on my back in the grassy area by the roadside. I had to calm myself and looked up. A man held a large umbrella over me and other kind faces appeared above me. A woman helped to treat a cut over Amber's eye. Another woman came close to me and said, “No one in the truck was injured. Help was on the way.” The woman mentioned she was a nurse; the other woman who took care of Amber's cut was an eye specialist. We couldn't have asked for better care.

In the hospital the pain in my chest began to disappear. Later, the tests at the hospital made sure we had no serious injuries. We'd left all our troubles behind thanks to these kind people, who seemed to be angels (天使) in my eyes.