Rollercoaster rescue

Transcript:

Too many thrills - even for a rollercoaster.

More than 20 people had to be rescued by fire-fighters when the ride in the US state of Maryland malfunctioned.

They were stranded for several hours about 20 metres above the ground and were given umbrellas to protect them from the blistering sun.

No injuries were reported. Well, as they say, life is full of ups and downs…

Vocabulary:

thrills - feelings of excitement malfunctioned - did not work in the way it was supposed to stranded - stuck in a particular place and unable to leave blistering - very hot (able to cause blisters due to excessive heat) injuries - wounds

Exercise:

Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from news reports. Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.

thrills / malfunctioned / stranded / blistering / injuries

1. The __________ heat has also hit parts of Canada, with temperatures in Toronto expected to top 35C on Friday, according to Environment Canada.

2. A Peruvian air force officer has survived a fall of about 1,500 metres (5,000 feet) after his parachute __________ during an exercise.

3. The rain flooded some major roads and subway stations, causing traffic chaos.

Hundreds of passengers were __________ for several hours on a flooded commuter train and had to be evacuated on police boats.

4. A woman in her 60s was airlifted to hospital after being hit by a tree which blew down at Fleet Pond nature reserve in Hampshire. Her __________ are not thought to be life-threatening.

5. "We don't ski and we don't want to ski. Sledging gives us all the __________ we need," said Melanie. "We have our own sledges, and we go on sledging holidays every year."

"We like being in the mountains, and the rush of going down the slopes fast - this is perfect."

Answers:

1. The blistering heat has also hit parts of Canada, with temperatures in Toronto expected to top 35C on Friday, according to Environment Canada.

<span xml:lang="en">Source:<link type="page"><caption> Deadly heatwave settles across US and Canada</caption><url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14238358" platform="highweb"/></link> </span>

2. A Peruvian air force officer has survived a fall of about 1,500 metres (5,000 feet) after his parachute malfunctioned during an exercise.

<span xml:lang="en">Source:<link type="page"><caption> Peru air force officer survives fall after parachute malfunction</caption><url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-27320267" platform="highweb"/></link> </span>

3. The rain flooded some major roads and subway stations, causing traffic chaos.

Hundreds of passengers were stranded for several hours on a flooded commuter train and had to be evacuated on police boats.

<span xml:lang="en">Source: <link type="page"><caption> Toronto flooded by record-breaking rainstorm</caption><url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23236921" platform="highweb"/></link> </span>

4. A woman in her 60s was airlifted to hospital after being hit by a tree which blew down at Fleet Pond nature reserve in Hampshire. Her injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.

<span xml:lang="en">Source: <link type="page"><caption> Ex-hurricane Bertha brings high winds and rain across UK</caption><url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28730305" platform="highweb"/></link> </span>

5. "We don't ski and we don't want to ski. Sledging gives us all the thrills we need," said Melanie. "We have our own sledges, and we go on sledging holidays every year."

"We like being in the mountains, and the rush of going down the slopes fast - this is perfect."

<span xml:lang="en">Source:<link type="page"><caption> How to hit the slopes and kep your dignity intact</caption><url href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12510029" platform="highweb"/></link> </span>