*Natural Disasters

TEST

1) If a country doesn’t have rain for a very long period, we say it suffers from __.

1.floods       2.drought        3.earthquakes            4.tornadoes

2) When a disaster occurs, people move to another area or country. What are these people called?

1.aid workers        2.refugees      3.migrants        4.immigrants

3) When a disaster occurs, people describe the situation using some of the words below. Which word does NOT mean very important?

1.Emergency             2.crisis          3.urgent situation   4. inconsequential

4) What’s the international request for help used by ship captains and aeroplane pilots if they are having problems?

1.marchday   2.aprilday   3.mayday   4.juneday

5) Which of the following words would you NOT expect to hear in a report about a country without food?

1.famine     2.scarcity           3.abundance   4.food shortage

6) Which word does NOT fit the sentence? ‘In war many people die, but many more are ___        .

1.injured    2.wounded                  3.killed           4.hurt

 Reading

Choose the best word from the box to complete the following sentences. 

combine dams devastating flooding human-made pieces potential prevent snow widespread

CAUSES OF FLOODS

Floods cause ___  damage. Unfortunately, there is little we can do to ___  flooding in some situations. There are several causes for ___  including deep ___ melt, icy rivers, and broken ____ . First, when deep snow melts it creates large amounts of water. When heavy rain and sudden warm temperatures ____  with the deep snow, floods can occur. Second, rivers that are covered in ice can cause floods when the ice melts. The ice ___ form dams which break and cause flooding. Third, __  dams can break and cause __   damage. The water from these dams can be as powerful as a tidal wave. Our best plan of attack against flooding is to recognize the __  for flooding in certain condi­tions.

Complete the sentences. 

Floods, hailstorm, volcanic eruption, a drought, a landslide, a wildfire, an avalanche.

-… are rain drops that have formed together into ice.                                           

 -… are the result of prolonged rainfall from a storm, rapid melting of large    amounts of snow, or rivers which rise up their levels of water.       

-… is a slide of a large snow or rock mass down a mountainside. It’s one of     the major dangers faced in the mountains in winter.                                               
  -… is a disaster closely related to an avalanche, but instead of occurring with snow, it occurs involving actual elements of the ground, including rocks, trees, parts of houses etc. which may happen to be swept up.                                  

   -… is the point in which a volcano is active and releases its power, and eruptions come in many forms.                                                                           
     -… is defined as an acute shortage of water and crop failure. It is an abnormally dry period when there is not enough water to support water needs.                                                          
      -… is an uncontrolled fire burning in wild land areas. Common causes include lightning and drought but they may also be started by human carelessness.