A week after the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal, the full extent of the disaster is still coming to light. The United Nations has called for further support to aid the rescue attempts. Only $53 million of the $415 million promised by countries has been given. The capital Kathmandu is struggling to deal with the sheer enormity of the destruction, while whole towns along the length of the Kathmandu Valley have been flattened. Hundreds of thousands of homes across the impoverished Himalayan nation have been damaged or destroyed, leaving more than three million people sheltering under blue tarpaulins and in need of food and medicine.

Nepal's Prime Minister, Sushil Koirala, has admitted that his government is overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster and is ill-equipped to cope. He requested helicopters to help with the distribution of aid. However, the logistics of this are being hampered by the country's rugged terrain, which often makes it difficult for anything to be delivered by air. Many of the roads have been swept away by avalanches and landslides. Further exacerbating the problem is the fact that Kathmandu's international airport has only one runway, which has hindered the delivery of much-needed supplies. The U.N. World Food Program warned that it would take time for aid to reach more remote communities.

1. TRUE / FALSE:Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.The Nepal quake struck at a magnitude of 8.7 on the Richter Scale.T / F

b.Nepal is still waiting for most of the money it has been promised in aid.T / F

c.Authorities in Kathmandu is now on top of the situation in the capital.T / F

d.Over three million people are living under blue tarpaulin sheets.T / F

e.Nepal's government admitted it could not cope with the disaster.T / F

f.The country's rugged terrain is making it difficult to deliver aid.T / F

g.The article says Kathmandu's airport only has two runways.T / F

h.The U.N. is confident aid can reach remote communities very soon.T / F

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.What was the magnitude of the earthquake that struck Nepal?

2.How much money has Nepal so far received?

3.What is struggling to deal with the enormity of the destruction?

4.Where have whole towns been flattened?

5.What are millions of people sheltering under?

6.What did Nepal's leader say his government is overwhelmed by?

7.What is making the logistics of aid delivery difficult?

8.What have avalanches swept away?

9.How many runways does Kathmandu's international airport have?

10.Where did the U.N. say it would take time to get aid to?

答案

TRUE / FALSE

a F b T c F d T e T f T g F h F

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.7.8

2.$53 million

3.Kathmandu

4.The Kathmandu Valley

5.Blue tarpaulins

6.The scale of the disaster

7.The country's rugged terrain

8.Roads

9.One

10.More remote villages