365个英语简短小故事-332. The Fire in the Hills (1)

The fire started Saturday afternoon. Fire officials didn’t yet know how it started, but they suspected arson¹. Arsonists² listen to weather reports. They get excited when they hear that the Los Angeles area is going to have Santa Ana winds, which can blow steadily³ at 30 mph and gust⁴ to 60 mph.

Planes dropped flame retardant around the southern edge of the fire to protect houses closest to the foothills. On the radio, a reporter said the fire had consumed 100 acres. Fire officials thought that the fire would be out within 24 hours, if the Santa Ana winds didn’t start blowing.

At 10:30 Saturday evening, Adam walked downtown to see if he could get a better view of the fire. He had never seen his small town so crowded on a Saturday night. Everyone was watching the fire. He got a great view with his binoculars⁵. Even though downtown was windless, he saw flames that looked like they must have been 50 or 60 feet high. The winds had picked up in the foothills. The red flames stood out clearly against the night sky. At 11 p.m., fire officials announced a mandatory⁶ evacuation of about 100 homes north of Carter Avenue.

 

1 arson   

n.纵火，放火

参考例句：

• He was serving a ten spot for arson.他因纵火罪在服十年徒刑。
• He was arraigned on a charge of arson.他因被指控犯纵火罪而被传讯。

2 arsonists   

n.纵火犯( arsonist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The factory was destroyed in a fire started by arsonists. 工厂在纵火犯引起的火灾中烧毀了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Australian Attorney-General Robert McClelland said suspected arsonists could face murder charges. 澳大利亚总检察长罗伯特麦克莱兰说，怀疑纵火犯可能面临谋杀指控。 来自互联网

3 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

4 gust   

n.阵风，突然一阵（雨、烟等），（感情的）迸发

参考例句：

• A gust of wind blew the front door shut.一阵大风吹来，把前门关上了。
• A gust of happiness swept through her.一股幸福的暖流流遍她的全身。

5 binoculars   

n.双筒望远镜

参考例句：

• He watched the play through his binoculars.他用双筒望远镜看戏。
• If I had binoculars,I could see that comet clearly.如果我有望远镜，我就可以清楚地看见那颗彗星。

6 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。