Quick Thinking

Imagine you are the first on the scene of a horrific road accident. H__ (0). Are you prepared to put your own life at risk just to comfort her?

Now imagine you're the passenger in a two-seater light aircraft at 2,500 feet.

_________ (1). Suddenly the pilot has a massive heart attack and dies at he controls. How do you react?

Anne Fernandez and Robin Johnson, who faced these dilemmas for real, are just two of the everyday heroes celebrated in Michael Buerk's new book, “Dramatic Stories of Real-Life Rescues”. ___________ (2). But, here in print, the peculiar drama and uneasy suspense of these true stories comes across with even greater impact. For the first time, you find yourself inside the minds of the victims and the rescuers, experiencing their terror, sharing their sense of disbelief.

What soon becomes clear is that when life is at risk, human beings are capable of using amazing qualities deep inside themselves. __________ (3) Katie was playing in a children's swimming pool when her long hair got sucked into one of the intake valves.

__________ (4). In a flash of inspiration, Thomas - himself only a teenager – was able to improvise resuscitation techniques that kept her alive under water for well over four minutes.

Taking into account the warning nature of so many of these tales, this book takes the opportunity to tell readers a series of simple practical tips which could help you deal with similar life-threatening situations. ___________ (5). The author of this inspiring book is the welcomed news reporter, Michael Buerk - in his own way a lifesaver.

___________ (6). To a large extent, it was Michael who first alerted the world to the scale of that tragedy, triggering massive international relief effort which eventually saved over a million lives.

In his book, as ever, Michael Buerk resists the temptation to sensationalise. _____________ (7). The result is a welcome reminder of the immense capacity for self-sacrifice that can be found inside every one of us.

A Such tales of courage challenge belief.

В Не simply lets the facts rivet you, the man applies his journalistic skills to sketch

in the everyday human details that make these stories so vivid.

С You have no previous flying experience.

D Take Thomas Bradley, a rescuer of 12-year-old Katie Rogers.

E You may have witnessed their acts of courage in the exciting BBC television

series of the same name.

F For instance, Katie’s story is followed by a clear explanation of the ABC

of resuscitation - Airway, Breathing and Circulation.

G Who can forget his moving film reports from the scene of the Ethiopian

famine in 1984?

H A five-year-old girl is trapped beneath the wreckage of a container lorry

which is about to crush her to death any second.

I The water which was going round plaited her hair into what was, effectively,

a thick rope, pulling her head beneath the pool's surface.

Exercise 27. Read the text. Then choose the best answer to each question.