Hurricanes reading

Natural Disasters

This is the preparation material for an English Conversation Lesson about Natural Disasters.  Listen to an audio discusson about one person's experience of a hurricane; learn phrasalverbs relating to weather and disasters and discover the most common questions that people may ask each other about this important subject.

Audio Discussion 

Download Hurricane Audio

http://www.englishwithjo.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Hurricane-Audio1.mp3

Transcript of Hurricane Audio

HURRICANES TRANSCRIPT

Todd: So Ivan, in America, in California we have earthquakes. Do you have any natural disasters in Houston?

Ivan: Uh, it floods a lot and we get hurricanes. Houston's called a bayou city. Bayou is kind of like a dirty river. Sometimes it rains a lot, that thing fills up over, and the next thing you know you got water in your house. Hurricanes are really, really angry typhoons I think. The first hurricane I ever remember (we name our hurricanes, you give them names, usually girl names), and the first hurricane I remember was back in 1984 named "Hurricane Alice" I believe. Um, I was in a soccer camp. It starts raining, oh my God it's raining, trees are falling down and cars are kind of being pushed away from the water and stuff and I'm scared to death that my parents are dead right. I was only seven years old. So I remember, I couldn't remember my phone number and the camp counsellors were trying to look it up. Call up: ring, ring, ring. My mom answers the phone, "Are you OK? Are you OK?" "Yes, Ivan, we're OK. Don't worry about it. It's just a rain storm." But it was an absolute mess. The next day, the soccer field is completely wiped out. It was, yeah, they're big angry storms.

Todd: How long does a hurricane usually last?

Ivan: Usually, about two or three days.

Todd: Oh, really

Ivan: Yeah, they just kind of stay in Houston. They like Houston. Something about the weather pattern. They just float to Houston and stay there.

Todd: Man, that's pretty intense. So afterward everything is just kind of wiped out.

Ivan: Ah, a lot of windows are broken. I said a lot of cars are upside down sometimes, cause the wind is really, really high, plus you got the water that floats the cars, but it's fun when it stops cause the streets are flooded
and you can go swimming.

Todd: You swim in the water?

Ivan: Sure. Sure. It's just rain water.

* Audio courtesy of elllo.org. 

Natural Disasters and Phrasal Verbs

• Blow away - When the wind moves something from a place
• Fall down – To fall to the ground
• Blow over – Become less strong and then ended
• Tear off – To remove with force
• Flood out – To leave a home or place because of a flood.
• Pour down – Rained heavily

Last year, I experienced a very strong hurricane. The winds were ferocious; the roofs of houses were torn off, trees fell down and cars were blown away.  It poured down with rain and we were completely flooded out.  Finally, after three days, it all blew over.

Conversation questions about natural disasters

• What did you think is the worst natural disaster?
• Which one are you most afraid of?
• Have you ever experienced a natural disaster?
• Which natural disaster causes the most damage?
• Which natural disaster kills the most number of people?
• Why do you think poor people are more affected by natural disasters?
• Are there any common natural disasters in your country?
• Do you think there are more natural disasters than there used to be?
• Why do you think there are so many movies about natural disasters?
• Do you know someone who has been affected by a tsunami?
• Is there an early warning system for tsunamis in the area you live?
• How do you know that a tsunami is going to hit soon?
• What would you do if you knew a tsunami was coming?
• What are some problems that occur after a tsunami has hit?
• Why do people continue to live in tsunami areas?
• Have you ever experienced an earthquake?
• What preparations should you make before the earthquake hits?
• What kind of injuries are caused by earthquakes?
• What frightens people most after an earthquake?
• Where is the best place to go during an earthquake?

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