But the biggest killer was probably soil liquefaction (地基液化), which happens when a powerful quake turns the dry ground into a liquid mire (泥沼) and this totally destroyed several neighborhoods.

The official death reports rose to 1,948, and most of them were in Palu, the center of the Sulawesi Island. Bodies are still being dug out and the numbers from less populated areas are increasing but they seem to have suffered fewer deaths than the city. No one knows how many people are missing, especially in the areas hit by liquefaction, but it could be as high as 5,000, the National Disaster Agency said.

At a Palu middle school, fewer than 50 of its 697 students came. School principal Abdul Rashid said at least four students were killed in the quake. “Classes haven’t started. We’re only collecting data to find out how many students are safe,” he said. One boy chatting in the school with friends said he was disappointed that so few of his classmates had shown up. “I’m still waiting for the Ministry of Education to give us instructions on when to begin classes. For now, I don’t think we’re ready. Many children are so frightened that they need time to calm down.”

The government has collected $37 million to help victims of the earthquake. With the efforts of rescue workers and volunteers, the supply of gas and electricity has been recovered. Ruins would be cleared and areas hit by liquefaction would be turned into parks, gymnasiums and other public spaces, a spokesman said.

【1】It can be learned from paragraph 1 that ________.

A.the photo is released by Mohammad Fikri

B.no death was reported in the small town

C.the quake damaged many local buildings

D.Donggala is a town located off the Sulawesi island

【2】What caused the most damage in the quake?

A.A power failure.B.The cutoff of gas supply.

C.Soil liquefaction.D.The cracks of houses.

【3】Which of the following statements about the earthquake is TRUE?

A.Few people in Palu were killed in the quake.

B.People in the countryside suffered more from the hit.

C.Few students showed up because of their disappointment over the school.

D.The government is taking active measures against the disaster.

【4】What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A.To make a brief introduction of the damage caused by the tsunami.

B.To give a detailed news report of the Donggala quake.

C.To stress the importance of the rescue work after the quake.

D.To describe the students’ concern for safety at school.

【答案】

【1】C

【2】C

【3】D

【4】B

【解析】

这是一篇新闻报道。文章报道了在Donggala 岛Sulawesi 小镇发生的7.5级地震，在地震中土壤液化造成的破坏最大，进一步报道了地震对学校的影响，造成死亡人数上升到1,948人，政府正在采取积极措施来应对这场灾难。

【1】细节理解题。根据第一段第二句“The quake brought down many buildings”（ 地震使许多建筑物倒塌了）可知，地震毁坏了许多当地建筑，C选项里的“damaged”（毁坏）呼应第一段第二句中的“brought down”（使倒下）。故选C。

【2】推理判断题。根据第二段第一句“But the biggest killer was probably soil liquefaction”（但最大的杀手可能是土壤液化），可以推断，在地震中，土壤液化造成的破坏最大。文中“killer”（杀手）引申为破坏力最大的原因。故选C。

【3】细节理解题。根据最后一段“The government has collected $37 million to help victims of the earthquake. With the efforts of rescue workers and volunteers, the supply of gas and electricity has been recovered. Ruins would be cleared and areas hit by liquefaction would be turned into parks, gymnasiums and other public spaces, a spokesman said.”（ 政府已经筹集了3700万美元，以帮助地震灾民。在救援人员和志愿者的努力下，天然气和电力的供应已经恢复。一位发言人说，将清理废墟，将被液化破坏的地区变成公园，体育馆和其他公共场所。），可知，政府正在采取积极措施来应对这场灾难。故选D。

【4】推理判断题。第一段中的第一句“This photograph taken and released on Sep 28, 2018 by Indonesia’s National Agency for Disaster Management shows a house destroyed by a 7.5 magnitude (级) earthquake”（这张照片是由印度尼西亚国家灾害管理局于2018年9月28日拍摄并发布的，照片显示，一座房屋在7.5级地震中被摧毁了）引出新闻事件；第二段第一句“But the biggest killer was probably soil liquefaction”（但最大的杀手可能是土壤液化）说明地震破坏的主要原因；根据第三段第一句“The official death reports rose to 1,948”（官方的死亡报告人数上升到1948）可知，地震中死亡人数；第四段介绍震后学校状况；根据最后一段第一句“The government has collected $37 million to help victims of the earthquake.”（政府已经筹集了3700万美元，以帮助地震灾民。）可知，政府正在采取积极措施来应对这场灾难。可以推断作者写这篇文章的目的是为了对Donggala地震作详细的报道。故选B。

细节理解题里的语义转换，在文章找到选项中单词的同义词、近义词或反义词，再根据上下文理解最终确定答案。例如第1小题，根据第一段第二句“The quake brought down many buildings”（ 地震使许多建筑物倒塌了）可知，地震毁坏了许多当地建筑，C选项里的“damaged”（毁坏）呼应第一段第二句中的“brought down”（使倒下）。故选C。