I’ve always known that I’m very quick with my hands. If someone throws something, I catch it almost before I’m aware it has been thrown. When I was young, I had no idea how useful this skill would become.
Last week, I was going to visit a friend with her newborn and was on my way to a toy store to buy a gift. I’d once lived in the neighbourhood and I decided to head back to my old cupcake shop for a coffee. Sitting alone at a table outside with my drink, I was approached by an older man, who in a calm and very matter-of-fact way told me to call 911, because there was a baby on a fire escape.
I jumped up to see where the baby was. I was so surprised to see it, wearing a little onesie (连体衣) and lying on the fire escape railings (栏杆) between the second and third storeys. I was nervous, so the baby boy became my only priority.
As I was on the phone to the emergency services, I made eye contact with the child, keeping him calm, telling him to stay there. Some people were going up the stairs to find the parents, who were apparently sleeping through the whole drama.
I just wanted the child to feel safe. I hoped he’d stay there until somebody could rescue him. Apparently he had slipped through pieces of cardboard placed next to an air-conditioning unit in the window, and without bars to protect him he’d crawled (爬) out and up the fire escape towards the next storey. He was only 16 months old. For him to even climb up and balance in that position was incredible.
Then he slipped. Instinctively (本能), he grabbed on the railing as he fell, hanging by his arms. I knew he couldn’t hold on, 25 feet above the street, for long. I sensed people had gathered behind, but my attention was purely focused on my intention to catch the baby.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I made sure I was positioned to catch him.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The moments after he was saved were exciting.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________| with his legs crossed, slid, crawled, climb, felt her way stepped, rose to his feet on shaky legs, paced up and down, dashed into, tiptoed |
Rocky Lyons was five years old when his mother Kelly was driving through rural Alabama. He was asleep on the front seat of their truck
Danny was nearly knocking into a passing car when a passer-by pushed him to safety.
We ate a big breakfast at a local restaurant, like we did every Father’s Day. The present my daughter gave me was a T-shirt with the words “World’s Coolest Dad”. I put it on, feeling that was what made Father’s Day so great.
Just then my volunteer fire-department pager (呼机) went off: “Attention, Pocahontas-Old Ripley firefighters! House fire on Simpson Street. Repeat. House fire on Simpson Street.”
“Gotta go,” I said. I ran to my car and took off. I got to the firehouse in minutes. Another firefighter, Tom Smith, and the chief were waiting. “Don, Tommy, take truck 253. Roll!” he ordered. “The rest of the guys will be right behind you.” As the first on the scene, our job was to make sure everyone was out of the house, locate the nearest hydrant (消防栓), and then wait for backup.
A small crowd had gathered in front of number 907 when we got there. They watched the fire in panic. Thick black smoke could be seen pouring from the one-story house’s open front door. A large man burst through the door, red eyes streaming with tears. “Please hurry!” he called. “My boy’s still in there. I couldn’t get to him!”
There was no time to wait for backup. I left Tommy outside and rushed into the house.
“Anyone here?” I shouted. No answer. I searched every inch of the first two rooms. No child. The fire had grown so fierce by then. It seemed that the roof would collapse at any time. All at once a vision was put into my head—that father begging us to save his child. I mustn’t give up. Not today, I thought. There still might be a chance.
注意：
1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Suddenly I heard a weak cry from the next room.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
It was a special Father’s Day, not only for me, but also for the boy, his father and my daughter.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5 . Rescuers in Jersey said Sunday after an all-night search that there was no hope of survivors from an explosion that flattened a three-story apartment block. At least three people were confirmed killed in the accident early Saturday in the Channel island’s port capital St Helier, following a suspected gas leak. “We have three confirmed deaths and it’s fair to say we expect to find more,” police chief Robin Smith told a news conference, saying that around 12 residents remained unaccounted for. “It is with sadness that I am confirming that the search-and-rescue operation has been moved to a recovery operation,” he said.
The phase involved a “painstaking search of the debris” which could take weeks, Smith said, adding that a gas leak was the ‘likely” cause. Aided by sniffer dogs and experts from southern England, Jersey emergency workers had searched the rubble (瓦砾)overnight.
Fire chief Paul Brown confirmed that firefighters were called out to investigate the smell of gas on Friday evening, more than seven hours before the explosion. But in vain. He admitted that something had gone “horribly wrong”, considering the subsequent disaster, but insisted that Jersey islanders could still have confidence in his service. Jersey’s gas supplier, Island Energy, said it was working with the fire service to understand what happened.
Like many others in St Helier, Jersey’s Chief Minister Kristina Moore said she was awoken by the explosion. “Across the island you could hear this extraordinary sound,” she told the BBC. “It’s unthinkable news, so we’re all absolutely shocked and really worried about the people who are involved and about those whose lives have been lost.”
The incident caps a tragic week for Jersey, a British Crown dependency not part of the United Kingdom, whose economy relies on banking, tourism and fishing. “We must call on the collective strength of the island community,” Moore said.
1. What’s the possible cause of the accident?| A．The gas leak. | B．The gas supplier. |
| C．The recovery operation. | D．The unexpected explosion. |
| A．Rescuing the dead. | B．Searching the rubble. |
| C．Searching for the debris. | D．Working with fire service. |
| A．He had predicted the explosion hours before it. |
| B．The fire service was investigating the explosion. |
| C．People lost confidence in the island’s fire service. |
| D．The fire service was partly responsible for the accident. |
| A．Panicked and frightened. | B．Relieved and hopeful. |
| C．Astonished and concerned. | D．Fearful and sorrowful. |
6 . Home accidents occur unexpectedly everywhere in and around the house.
Another way is keeping a first aid kit in your room. When you prepare a first aid kit for your house, you need to decide about the things that you need to keep inside it. First of all, you need band aids. You must make sure that these band aids are of all sizes and they must also be waterproof.
| A．Then you need to have tape as well as painkillers. |
| B．So what you need to do is prepare yourself for them. |
| C．In addition, you also have the chances of getting shock. |
| D．Here are necessary things you should put in a first aid kit. |
| E．This will protect you from the accidents which are common. |
| F．You can follow certain things to prevent suffering from pain due to accidents. |
| G．It is perhaps significant for you to be well-prepared before an accident happens. |
7 . A China plane struck a bird after taking off in Chengdu, Sichuan, and had to immediately return to the airport last October, and it wasn’t the first accident between an aircraft and a bird last year.
In fact, more than 20,000 wildlife strikes with aircraft were reported worldwide in 2023 — the vast majority of those animals being birds. The strikes can also include run-ins with bats or creatures on the ground, such as deer or turtles. Expanding wildlife populations, increases in number of aircraft movements, and a trend toward faster and quieter aircraft all have contributed to the increase in wildlife strikes.
Bird strikes are a hazard not just to commercial airplanes, but to all sorts of aircraft. However, historical data shows that damage is reported in a small percentage of incidents. Last year, 95% of the global strikes involved some kind of damage — and only 5% of those caused “substantial” damage.
Some of the most disturbing types of strikes can happen when one or more birds go into a plane’s engine, which might cause a lot of damage to the aircraft. The pilot would need to return to the airport or find a safe place to land.
In last October’s China plane incident, the Beijing-bound flight was able to land normally in Chengdu after taking into account what the airline described as security concerns. Senior captain Chen Jianguo said pilots are trained on how to respond if they have a bird strike in flight. The pilot in this case did exactly what he was trained to do.
“There are lots of things that are being used by airports to try to manage the habitat and birds around the airport,” said Chen Jianguo. Airports need to manage bird habitats to reduce or get rid of trees and plants that shelter birds, or address wetlands that can attract birds. Collecting data on what kinds of birds are involved in strikes is equally important so the risks can better be managed. Many airports also use audible signals to scare birds away, such as the sounds of fireworks.
1. What is a cause of the increase in wildlife strikes?| A．The poorly designed aircraft. |
| B．The growing number of birds. |
| C．The destruction of wildlife habitats. |
| D．The absence of environmental awareness. |
| A．Danger. | B．Delay. | C．Accident. | D．Reminder. |
| A．They are a rare occurrence. |
| B．They usually damage engines. |
| C．Most of them cause slight damage. |
| D．Most of them involve one single bird. |
| A．Ways to study bird behavior. |
| B．Measures to drive birds away. |
| C．Efforts to restore bird habitat. |
| D．Attempts to take care of birds. |
8 . White dressed up as Captain America for the annual Anti-Bullying (反霸凌) Superhero Day. But when spotting
It was rush hour. White was
DeAngelis, the man behind the
White
| A．barrier | B．unfairness | C．violence | D．trouble |
| A．give way to | B．fall back on | C．get around | D．forget about |
| A．cycling | B．running | C．driving | D．walking |
| A．locate | B．miss | C．search | D．contact |
| A．outcome | B．tendency | C．process | D．problem |
| A．stop | B．move | C．report | D．disable |
| A．Mistakenly | B．Sincerely | C．Decidedly | D．Hesitantly |
| A．following | B．separating | C．threatening | D．approaching |
| A．waved | B．escaped | C．wandered | D．raced |
| A．struck | B．measured | C．grabbed | D．broke |
| A．bug | B．lift | C．blow | D．kick |
| A．scene | B．pickup | C．wheel | D．seat |
| A．shocked | B．ashamed | C．discouraged | D．amused |
| A．protected | B．encountered | C．created | D．played |
| A．rescue | B．visit | C．guidance | D．comment |
9 . Gabe and I were taking a road trip from Weyburn to Nelson. At around 5: 30 pm, we were
When I
I don’t know how long we were unconscious, but I woke up to the
Luckily, four men spotted us and went to our
When the medical team finally reached us, they
We spent weeks in hospital. Even after
Before this all happened, we were happy-go-lucky people. We’re even more
| A．cycling | B．hiking | C．driving | D．evacuating |
| A．aware | B．optimistic | C．confident | D．anxious |
| A．gave in | B．checked out | C．fell apart | D．looked up4 |
| A．dropping | B．erupting | C．crashing | D．sheltering |
| A．tapped | B．landed | C．cracked | D．swept |
| A．sound | B．behavior | C．company | D．scene |
| A．cry | B．wave | C．turn | D．fire |
| A．suffer | B．beat | C．shake | D．breathe |
| A．site | B．rescue | C．emergency | D．struggle |
| A．amazement | B．shock | C．protest | D．demand |
| A．honestly | B．obviously | C．responsibly | D．confusingly |
| A．treated | B．drove | C．loaded | D．exchanged |
| A．exercises | B．restorations | C．operations | D．experiments |
| A．determined | B．curious | C．focused | D．positive |
| A．injuries | B．ruins | C．sweats | D．traps |
10 . It was a bright May afternoon along the Maryland coast. Jonathan Bauer, and his 13-year-old daughter, Ava, were driving with the windows down as they headed home on the bridge. Suddenly, the calm was disturbed by the squeal of tires.
Not far ahead of them, a pickup(皮卡车) was drifting from one lane to the other. It slammed into a concrete barrier, flipped over the car directly ahead of them, and came to rest hanging over the railing of the bridge. Bauer hit the brakes in time, but another car came sliding backward toward him and struck his car’s fender(挡泥板). Bauer stopped his car. “Ava, are you OK?” he asked. She was shaken, but otherwise unhurt.
And then a scream came from the pickup above the waters of the bay. The driver dashed to the railing. Bauer ran up beside him. The man pointed down, saying something in Spanish. There was a car seat in the water. Struggling next to it was a girl, about two years old, terrified, floating on her back and crying.
Matters quickly went worse when the girl rolled over onto her stomach. “Ava! Stay by the car!” Bauer yelled, drooping to remove his shoes. Would he get hurt? Could he reach the girl in time? No time to wonder. All he had in mind was the faith that she must be saved immediately.
A moment later he was bouncing off the sandy bottom-unhurt! Bauer swam to the girl and lifted her out of the water: mouth half open, eyes nearly closed, not breathing. Standing, he laid her against his shoulder and hit at her back with the flat of his hand. Water came streaming from her mouth and slowly her eyes were opened. He pulled her close, hugging her to shelter her from the cold.
A boat pulled up and hauled them aboard. Ava Bauer was so inspired by her father’s actions that four months later she became a firefighter so that she, too, could save lives. “That girl is going to live a whole life because of him,” she says. “It’s incredible.”
1. What can we learn about Bauer and his daughter from the first two paragraphs?| A．They had a great time along the Maryland coast. |
| B．They crashed their car into others’ on the bridge. |
| C．They suffered a severe hit and hung over the railing. |
| D．They witnessed a terrible accident on the way home. |
| A．He saw a girl struggling in the water. |
| B．He was asked to help the pickup driver. |
| C．He was caught by the cry from the pickup. |
| D．He was concerned about the falling of the pickup. |
| A．Warm-hearted and modest. |
| B．Strong-willed and optimistic. |
| C．Determined and considerate. |
| D．Good-tempered and intelligent. |
| A．A Leap of Faith |
| B．An Unexpected Crash |
| C．A Moment of Inspiration |
| D．A Well-organized Rescue |
