PART C: READING COMPREHENSION
VI. Directions: Read through the following passages. Choose the bestanswer and put the letter in the bracket. (20%)
(A)
Hundreds of thousands of residents inJapan, New Zealand, the Philippines and Russia’s Kamchatka were told toevacuate after one of the world’s strongest quakes in a century hit Chile onSaturday, killing more than 300 people. Japanese officials had warned thattsunami waves of 3 meters or more could strike the country’s Pacific coast andordered or advised around 630,000 households to evacuate. The JapanMeteorological Agency (JMA) put the country’s highest tsunami at 1.2 meters inthe port of Kuji, northeast Japan. Smaller waves hit a swathe of the countryfrom the small island of Minamitori 1,950 km (1,200 miles) south of Tokyo toHokkaido island in the north. The JMA later downgraded its warning of a “majortsunami” to a tsunami of around 2 meters, but said residents should not letdown their guard. “Carelessness could be the biggest enemy,” Prime MinisterYukio Hatoyama told reporters earlier in the day. It was Japan’s first majortsunami warning in 17 years and only the fourth since 1952, the JMA said. Trainservices were halted in many areas along the Pacific coast, many highways wereclosed and there was minor flooding. Two nuclear plants in the area wereoperating normally and Japan’s Nippon Oil Corp said its 145,000 barrel-per-daySendai refinery was also functioning as usual. Police cars and fire truckspatrolled coastal roads and fishing boats, seeking to avoid any tsunami, headedout to sea under gray skies, with snow flurries in some areas. Japan is nostranger to tsunamis. In 1896, a magnitude 8.5 earthquake and tsunami left morethan 22,000 dead in northeastern Japan. Another of magnitude 8.1 hit the sameregion in 1933, killing 3,064. In May 1960, a tsunami struck the coasts ofHokkaido and other northern Pacific coastal areas after an earthquake in Chile,killing around 140 people. Since then, many harbors have had sea gatesinstalled to try to protect from tsunami and storms. The first waves to hit NewZealand were reported at the remote Chatham Islands, around 800 kilometers (500miles) east of New Zealand, with surges of up to 1.5 meters measured, the CivilDefense Ministry said. Authorities in Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka regionlifted a tsunami alert after a series of small waves appeared to cause nodamage, a spokeswoman for the Emergencies Ministry said. A tsunami hit beachesin eastern Australia but there were no initial reports of damage. Officialsissued an alert for most of the east coast and eastern parts of the islandstate of Tasmania, but said there were no concerns about major inundation. ThePhilippines canceled a tsunami alert on the eastern seaboard after the threat
dissipated. Hawaii dodged serious damageon Saturday when a tsunami merely lapped ashore, although residents were warnedto stay away from coastal areas because the ocean could remain unsettled forseveral more hours.
37. What is thepassage primarily about? ( )
A. How toprotect against tsunami. B.The history of tsunami.
C. The Tsunamiwarning. D.Chile’s earthquake.
38. According tothe passage, all the following are true about Japan EXCEPT ______.
A. that Japaneseauthorities were concerned about the tsunami
B. that someJapanese were killed in a tsunami following a Chile’s earthquake
C. that the earthquake of 8-plusmagnitude struck Japan in the same area twice within thirty years or so
D. that manyharbors in Japan have had sea gates since the mid-19th century
39. Which of the following is NOT truein Japan after the officials issued a wanting of the tsunami?( )
A. Trains wentout of service in many areas along the coast.
B. Many highwayswere closed.
C. There wasserious flooding.
D. Snow flurriedin some areas.
40. What can be inferred from thefigures of deaths in the earthquakes and tsunamis in Japan at different times? ( )
A. Earthquakesand tsunamis are now less destructive.
B. Moreeffective measures are now available.
C. The Japaneseare more alert to the dangers of earthquakes and tsunamis.
D. The Japanesenow live in anti-seismic buildings.
41. Which of thefollowing countries put an end to the tsunami warning? ( )
A. Japan and NewZealand. B.The US and Australia.
C. Russia andthe US. D.The Philippines and Russia.
