孫啟祿

自去年7月底以來，澳大利亞山火蔓延全國多地，吸引了全球的目光。無數(shù)動(dòng)物葬身火海。是什么造成了這場(chǎng)史無前例的大火？

Australia is being ravaged（破壞） by the worst wildfires seen in decades， with large swathes（一長條） of the country destroyed since the fire season began late July. A total of 28 people have died nationwide， and in the state of New South Wales alone， more than 900 houses have been destroyed. State and federal authorities are struggling to contain the massive blazes， even with firefighting assistance from other countries， including the United States.

Each year there is a fire season during the Australian summer， with hot， dry weather making it easy for blazes to start and spread. Natural causes are to blame most of the time， like lightning strikes in droughtaffected forests. Dry lightning was responsible for starting a number of fires in Victorias East Gippsland region in late December， which then traveled more than 20 kilometers in just five hours. Humans can also be to blame. NSW police have charged at least 24 people with deliberately starting bushfires， and have taken legal action against 183 people for firerelated offenses since November.

Bushfire conditions eased on Saturday， giving firefighters temporary respite（喘息） in areas where blazes are still raging. But with more hot weather expected next week， the risk is far from over. More than 123 fires are still burning across New South Wales， with 50 said to be uncontained and over 2，000 homes destroyed. In Victoria， there were 32 bushfire warnings. A firefighter died while tackling a blaze in the state on Saturday， bringing the death toll from this seasons bushfires to 28.

About half a billion animals have been affected by the fires across NSW， with millions likely dead—and thats a conservative estimate. That number of total animals affected could be as high as one billion nationwide. Some species， like koalas， arent in any immediate danger of extinction because they are spread out across the country. But others that live in more niche（生態(tài)位） environments with lower populations， including certain types of frogs and birds， could be wiped out entirely if their habitats are hit by the fires.

Reading Check

1. What does the first paragraph mainly tell us？

A. The present conditions of the fire. B. The possible causes of the fire.

C. The help from other countries. D. The impacts of the fire.

2. What caused the fires in Victorias East Gippsland region in late December？

A. Human activities. B. Dry lighting.

C. Loud thunder. D. The drought.

3. What do we know about the animals from the last paragraph？

A. Most of them will die out.

B. Some of them might become extinct.

C. They will move to more niche environments.

D. They arent in any immediate danger of extinction.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

A firefighter died while tackling a blaze in the state on Saturday， bringing the death toll from this seasons bushfires to 28. 一名消防員在周六處理火災(zāi)時(shí)死亡，使得這一季的森林大火死亡人數(shù)達(dá)到28人。

【信息提取】A firefighter died是主句，“while tackling a blaze...”是省略句，句子補(bǔ)全為“while he was tackling a blaze...”，“bringing the death toll... to 28”作結(jié)果狀語。

【句式仿寫】然后我教他們?nèi)绾闻莶琛Ｎ易谝粡堊雷优?，在泡茶的過程中解釋了這個(gè)過程的每一步。