雅思阅读：事故救援人员

本文为大家准备了雅思阅读天天练：事故救援人员。通过模拟练习题，同学们可以直观地了解到自己的备考状况，从而更有针对性地进行复习。

一艘载有很多避难者的木船在澳大利亚沿岸被巨浪撞毁在石头上。不冷静的女人和孩子尖叫着跳入搅动的海水中，加大了事故的死亡人数。让我们来看看详细情况。

事故救援人员

A wooden boat packed with dozens of asylumseekers smashed apart on jagged rocks in heavyseas off an Australian island today, flingingscreaming women and children into churning waterand sending many to their deaths.

Christmas Island residents on cliffs abovewatched in horror as the boat broke apart with a crack, dumping passengers into huge wavesthat pounded them against the rocks. Rescue forts are under way and officials said it is notyet clear how many people were killed.

"While many details about this tragedy are still unconfirmed, I understand there havebeen a large number of fatalities and numerous injuries to those aboard the vessel, includingwomen and children," Western Australia state premier Colin Barnett said in a statement.

Acting prime minister Wayne Swan said the vessel was a people smuggler's boat, but itwas not clear how many people were on board or where they were from. "A number of peoplehave been rescued but sadly, some bodies have been retrieved," Mr Swan said.

Christmas Island is a remote Australian territory closer to Indonesia than the Australianmainland and a frequent target of rugee hopuls, who are housed in a detention centrethere.

Photos and videos taken by witnesses at the scene show the wooden boat crashing intothe rocks and breaking apart. The images also show people floating in the water amid thewreckage. The boat was about 20ft to 30ft long, with a cabin covered by a sheet of fabric orplastic.

Simon Prince, who lives next to the cliff where the boat crashed, said he was woken bywhat he thought were cheers. He walked outside to the cliff and instead heard cries for helpfrom a boat just offshore.

"The engine had failed. They were washing backward and forward very close to the cliffshere, which are jagged limestone cliffs, very nasty."

He called the police and soon there were dozens of locals standing on the cliffs, wonderinghow they could help despite the storm and crashing waves.

He said the boat, carrying about 50 people, was tossed about for an hour bore it finallyhit the rocks at the base of the cliff.

"When the boat hit the cliff there was a sickening crack. All the people on board rushed tothe land side, which is the worst thing they could do, but I don't think anybody could swim. Ithink there were about two lifeboats on board this thing," Mr Prince said.

"It was just horrible. People getting crushed. Bodies, dead children, the whole thing waspretty awful."

Mr Prince, who owns a dive shop, and other neighbours began hurling lifejackets into thewater, 50 or 60 of them. But many just floated away. Some would-be rescuers were injured onthe rocks while trying to get the lifejackets to those in the water, and needed stitches later, hesaid.

Resident Michael Foster watched in horror as women and children screamed out for help inthe churning seas below.

"They had lifejackets on them, but the water was just pushing them up ... and throwingthem towards the rocks," Mr Foster said. "It was a pretty horrible situation."

Mr Foster, an electrician, saw around 50 people struggling against the 10ft waves when hirst arrived at the cliff, but the currents soon began to sweep them away. He countedaround 10 bodies that appeared to be dead.