暴風雪中的徒步營救

四川 蔣建平

在北美的冬季，暴風雪會讓能見度瞬間變為0，猶如直接進入黑夜。Shannon St.Onge開車回家突遇暴風雪，她能平安脫險嗎？

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1Shannon St.Onge thought she could get home from work before the storm hit Pense, a town in Saskatchewan,Canada.

2“Yesterday, the weather network warned of a storm.Expected start time was at around 7 pm.I hit the dirt road at around 5：30 pm to head home before the storm came,”she wrote on social media.She took a dirt road because she thought it would be better for the winter driving conditions.

3Just as the road turned into gravel(石子路),the wind picked up and the visibility (能見度)became reduced.The wind made the snow move from the open fields across the roads and created dangerous conditions.“I found myself driving with my head out of the driver's window, watching the edge of the gravel as my guide, while I crawled forward at 15 km/h.I did this for about 10 km,until I could no longer see and I had to stop,right where I was 12 km from home,”she recalled.

4She pulled over and called 911.The operator suggested she wait the storm out, but the storm was not projected to let up until dawn.She posted her location on the Pense community webpage,hoping someone might be able to find her.

5That's when 80-year-old Andre Bouvier Sr.got a call about St.Onge's urgent request for help.He lived about half a mile away from where she pulled over.His tractor would not start,so he decided to head out on foot with a flashlight.To his surprise,he found two other vehicles with people who also needed help stranded(滯留)together with St.Onge.

6He led all seven people back to his home and welcomed them in for the evening.“This family fed us and gave us a warm place to rest our eyes for a few hours.When we all woke up at 5 am,he had already plowed(鏟雪)the driveway for us,and at around 5:30 am,we headed to town.Visibility was better,but still very poor.In the end,we all made it home safely and I have never hugged my kids tighter,”she said.

7As for Bouvier, he didn't want much credit for his efforts.“Everybody would have done the same thing,”he said.

Reading Check

1.What does the underlined word“hit”in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A.Realized.B.Reached.C.Knocked.D.Pushed.

2.Why was it impossible for St.Onge to continue driving?

A.She took the wrong road.

B.Her gas tank was empty.

C.The visibility was poor.

D.She met a traffic accident.

3.What does paragraph 6 mainly talk about Andre Bouvier Sr.?

A.His living habits.

B.How he helped the seven people.

C.Why he led strangers to his home.

D.His hard-working personality.

4.Which of the following words can best describe Andre Bouvier Sr.?

A.Warm-hearted and considerate.

B.Cold-hearted and talented.

C.Determined and ambitious.

D.Independent and motivated.

Language Study

Ⅰ.日積月累

warnv.警告

reducedadj.減少的

suggestv.建議

urgentadj.緊急的

feedv.給（人或動物）食物

turn into 變成；進入

crawl forward 向前爬；緩慢前行

pull over 靠邊停車

to one's surprise 令某人驚訝的是

in the end 最終

make it home 到家

Ⅱ.單句填空

1.I suggest that we ________(go)out to eat.

2.Police have warned ________possible delays.

3.Our dream holiday turned ________a nightmare.

4.To ________surprise,she was awarded first prize.

5.You can try your best to impress the interviewers, but ________the end it's often just a question of luck.