Unit 4Earthquakes
Period 2-3
Reading
A NIGHT THE EARTH DIDN'T SLEEP
Strange things were happening in the countryside of northeast Hebei. For three days the water in the village wells rose and fell, rose and fell. Farmers noticed that the well walls had deep cracks in them. A smelly gas came out of the cracks. In the farmyards, the chickens and even the pigs were too nervous to eat. Mice ran out of the fields looking for places to hide. Fish jumped out of their bowls and ponds. At about 3:00 am on July 28, 1976, some people saw bright lights in the sky. The sound of planes could be heard outside the city of Tangshan even when no planes were in the sky. In the city, the water pipes in some buildings cracked and burst. But the one million people of the city, who thought little of these events, were asleep as usual that night.
At 3:42 am everything began to shake. It seemed as if the world was at an end! Eleven kilometres directly below the city the greatest earthquake of the 20th century had begun. It was felt in Beijing, which is more than two hundred kilometres away. One-third of the nation felt it. A huge crack that was eight kilometres long and thirty metres wide cut across houses, roads and canals. Steam burst from holes in the ground. Hard hills of rock became rivers of dirt. In fifteen terrible seconds a large city lay in ruins. The suffering of the people was extreme. Two-thirds of them died or were left without parents. The number of people who were killed or injured reached more than 400,000.
But how could the survivors believe it was natural? Everywhere they looked nearly everything was destroyed. All of the city’s hospitals, 75% of its factories and buildings and 90% of its homes were gone. Bricks covered the ground like red autumn leaves. No wind, however, could blow them away. Two dams fell and most of the bridges also fell or were not safe for traveling. The railway tracks were now useless pieces of steel. Tens of thousands of cows would never give milk again. Half a million pigs and millions of chickens were dead. Sand now filled the wells instead of water. People were shocked. Then, later that afternoon, another big quake which was almost as strong as the first one shook Tangshan. Some of the rescue workers and doctors were trapped under the ruins. More buildings fell down. Water, food, and electricity were hard to get. People began to wonder how long the disaster would last.
All hope was not lost. Soon after the quakes, the army sent 150,000 soldiers to Tangshan to help the rescue workers. Hundreds of thousands of people were helped. The army organized teams to dig out those who were trapped and to bury the dead. To the north of the city, most of the 10,000 miners were rescued from the coal mines there. Workers built shelters for survivors whose homes had been destroyed. Fresh water was taken to the city by train, truck and plane. Slowly, the city began to breathe again.
地球的一个不眠之夜
　　河北省东北部的农村不断有些怪事发生：三天来，村子里的井水升升降降，起起伏伏。农夫注意到，水井的井壁上有深深的裂缝，裂缝里冒出臭气。农家大院里的鸡, 甚至猪都紧张得不想吃食。老鼠从田地里跑出来找地方藏身。鱼缸和池塘里的鱼会往外跳。在1976年7月28日凌晨3点左右，有些人看到天上一道道明亮的光。即使天空没有飞机，在唐山城外也可以听到飞机声。在市内，有些建筑物里的水管爆裂开来。但是，唐山市的一百万居民几乎都没有把这些情况当一回事，当天晚上照常睡着了。
　　在凌晨3点42分，一切都开始摇晃起来。世界似乎到了末日！二十世纪最大的一次地震就在唐山市正下方11公里处发生了。200多公里以外的北京市都感到了地震，全国1 / 3的地方都有震感。一条8公里长30米宽的巨大裂缝横穿房舍、马路和渠道。地上一些洞穴冒出了蒸气。石头山变成了泥沙河，在可怕的15秒钟内，一座大城市就沉沦在一片废墟之中。人们遭受的灾难极为深重。2/3的人在地震中死去或受伤。成千上万个家庭遇难，许多孩子变成了孤儿。死伤的人数达到40多万。
　　幸存的人们又怎么能相信这是自然现象呢？人们无论朝哪里看，哪里的一切都几乎被毁了。所有的市内医院、75%的工厂和建筑物、90%的家园都消失了。残砖就像秋天的红叶覆盖着大地，然而它们是不可能被风刮走的。两座大坝垮了，多数桥梁不是塌了就是无法安全通行了。铁轨如今成了一条条废钢。好几万头牛再也挤不出奶来。50万头猪和几百万只鸡全都死了。井里满是沙子，而不是水。人们惊呆了。接着，在下午晚些时候，又一次和第一次一样的强烈的地震震撼着唐山。有些医生和救援人员被困在废墟下面。更多的房屋倒塌了。水、电和食物都很难弄到。人们开始纳闷，这场灾难还会持续多久。
　　不是所有的希望都破灭了。地震后不久，部队派了15万名战士到唐山来协助救援人员，数十万的人得到了救助。部队人员组成小分队，将受困的人们挖出来，将死者掩埋。在唐山市的北边，有一个万名矿工的煤矿，其中多数人得救了。援救人员为那些家园被毁的幸存者盖起了避难所，用火车、卡车和飞机向市内运来了水。慢慢地，这座城市又开始出现了生机。
Ⅰ.Read the passage carefully and join the correct parts
of the sentences.
1. The chickens didn’t eat because
2. The people didn't worry because
3. Such a great number of people died because
4. Water was needed because
5. The people did not lose hope because
A. the army came to help them.
B. the quake happened while they were sleeping.
C. they were nervous.
D. dams and wells were useless.
E. they didn’t know what the strange events meant.
Comprehending
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
For three days
EVENTS
⒈ water in the village wells rose and fell
⒉ well walls developed deep cracks
⒊ a smelly gas came out of the cracks
⒋ mice ran out of the fields
⒌ fish jumped out of their bowls and ponds
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
At about 3:00 am on July 28, 1976
EVENTS
⒈ bright lights appeared in the sky
⒉ the sound of planes could be heard although there were no planes
⒊ some water pipes burst
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
At 3:42 am on July 28, 1976
EVENTS
⒈ everything began to shake
⒉ huge cracks appeared in the roads
⒊ steam burst from holes in the ground
⒋ rock turned into rivers of dirt
⒌ 75% of buildings and 90% of homes were gone
⒍ more than 400,000 people were killed or injured
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
Afternoon of July 28, 1976
EVENTS
⒈ a second quake almost as strong as the first one
⒉ more damage to buildings and rescuers
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
Soon after the quake
EVENTS
⒈ the army arrived
⒉ shelters built for survivors
⒊ water supplies brought in
Ⅱ. Read the passage again and make a timetable.
TIME
For three days
EVENTS
⒈ water in the village wells rose and fell
⒉ well walls developed deep cracks
⒊ a smelly gas come out of the cracks
⒋ mice ran out of the fields
⒌ fish jumped out of their bowls and ponds

Ⅲ. Read the text quickly to find out which paragraph(s) the
following sentences are about.
Para. 1
Para. 2
Para. 3
Para. 4
A. The people were very shocked at the destruction.
B. The army came to help the survivors, bringing hope for a new life.
The earthquake destroyed the city of Tangshan.
Before the earthquake, strange things began to happen, but no one paid attention to them.
Ⅳ. Sum up the main idea of each part of the passage.
Part 1: Para 1
Part 2: Para 2&3
Part 3: Para 4
Ⅴ. Choose the best answer according to the text.
⒈ Before the earthquake people were asleep as usual because ___ .
A. they didn’t notice anything strange happening
B. they knew well about earthquakes
C. something strange happened in many places
D. they didn’t realize the arrival of an earthquake
⒉ When did the earthquake happen?
A. On the night of July 28th, 1976.
B. On the morning of July 28th, 1976.
C. On the afternoon of July 28th, 1976.
D. The writer didn’t tell us.
⒊ How many soldiers were sent to Tangshan to help the rescue workers?
A. 50,000. B. 10,000. C. 150,000. D. 200,000.
⒋ Which is TRUE according to the passage?
A. People paid much attention to those strange things before the earthquake.
B. Before the earthquake animals became nervous.
C. After the earthquake water was needed because there was no water in dams
and wells.
D. After the earthquake the people in Tangshan lost all hope because they were
homeless.
⒌ What does the sentence “Slowly, the city began to breathe again.” mean?
A. The city will not die; it has hope and it can recover from the pain.
B. The army sent 150,000 soldiers to Tangshan to help people.
C. Hundreds of thousands of people were helped.
D. Most of the 10,000 miners were rescued.
⒍ What does the passage talk about?
A. It talks about an earthquake in Tangshan.
B. It talks about how to protect oneself when an earthquake happens.
C. It talks about how to rescue the injured people during the earthquake.
D. It talks about what to do when an earthquake happens.
Details of each part
What strange things happened before Tangshan Earthquake?
rose and fell
deep cracks, smelly gas
too nervous to eat
ran out of, looking for places to hide
jumped out
bright lights
sound of planes heard even no planes
cracked and burst
Part 1
Data (数据)
____ of the nation felt the earthquake.
A huge crack that was __ kilometers long and metres wide
cut across houses.
In ___ terrible seconds a large city lay in ruins.
____ of the people died or were injured during the earthquake.
The number of people who were killed or injured reached
more than ________.
All of the city’s hospitals, _____ of its factories and buildings
and _____ of its homes were gone.
1/3
8
30
15
2/3
400,000
75%
90%
Para. 2-3
Part 2
How did the army help the people in Tangshan?
The army organized teams to dig out those who were trapped and to bury those who were dead.
Miners were rescued from the coal mines.
Shelters were built for survivors whose homes had been destroyed.
Fresh water was taken to the city.
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Part 3
After the earthquake
An ___________ happened in Tangshan in 1976. For a few days, water in the wells ____________. Mice, chicken, pigs and even fish became ________. And the water pipes in the buildings cracked and ______. But the people in Tangshan _______________ these events.
At 3:42 am, everything began to ______. It seemed that the world was _________. A huge _____ cut across the houses and roads, then the city lay _______. Two-thirds of the people _____or were _______. Then later that afternoon, another big quake shook Tangshan. People began to wonder how long ___________________. But ________ was not lost. Soldiers came to help Tangshan people. Slowly, the city began to _______ again.
rose and fell
earthquake
nervous
burst
thought little of
shake
at an end
crack
in ruins
died
injured
the disaster would last
all hope
breathe
Retell the story
Tangshan—in 1976
Tangshan—now
Tangshan’s new look
★ Don’t be nervous and keep calm.
★ Don’t try to run out of the classroom.
★ Protect your head by putting your bag on your head.
★ Squat (蹲下）or s