Selected Reading Materials: Accidents - Trapped in a Lift / Rescue
Read the following passage and take note of the underlined content.
DO NOT skip reading as it is important to see how the underlined content is used in the news article. Trapped in a Lift! For almost an hour, they were trapped in a shopping mall lift, five storeys up, 13 people in all, including seven children. In these hot and stuffy conditions, they waited as rescuers tried their best to prise open the lift doors that had become misaligned. A child cried and two had to urinate in plastic bottles, while an iPad was used to keep the rest occupied with games. The children were heading to classes at enrichment centres on the sixth storey. Two people stuck in the lift claimed rescue efforts took a long time because security guards who arrived at the scene turned down their requests to contact the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF). The guards claimed that their lift technician was already on his way. But when he arrived, he too, was unable to perform the rescue. Everyone was finally rescued after the SCDF officers arrived to help the lift technician. Mrs Pattterson was accompanying her children to their enrichment class at the sixth story when the lift suddenly jerked and stopped when it reached the fifth storey, then the lights went out. "We (the passengers in the lift) immediately pressed the alarm button and a voice came over the intercom, but it was muffled and all we heard was 'wait', " recalled Mrs Patterson. "After 10 minutes, all of us were sweating because the ventilator had stopped and the children were restless. Some also began complaining that they felt breathless," she added. Two men then used their hands to prise the doors open and managed to create a small gap. Fortunately, the lift had stopped at the food court on the fifth storey. People were waiting for the lift, and when they saw that the lift had broken down, they attempted to communicate with the people trapped inside. Someone jammed a fire extinguisher between the lift doors to keep them open, allowing more ventilation. A foodcourt stallholder even held an electric fan outside the lift for almost half an hour to blow air into the lift through the narrow gap, while another passed them bottles of water to drink. Finally, after almost an hour, the SCDF assisted the lift technician in opening the lift doors and everyone was rescued. An ambulance and fire engine had been despatched to the shopping mall but luckily no one was injured or needed special medical attention. Modified from 'Kids Stucked in Lift for an Hour', The New Paper, 08 Apri 2012. |
Post-Reading Activity 1
After reading the above passage, can you answer the following questions? This is not a comprehension exercise. Think of answers which can be used as content for your composition! 1) Why were the people in the lift trapped for a long time before they were rescued? 2) How did the parents / adults feel when they were trapped? 3) How did the the children feel when they were trapped? How did you think they reacted when they felt that way? 3) How were the children entertained when they were trapped? 4) After 10 min, why did the people in the lift began sweating? 5) How did the people trapped in the lift manage to get some fresh air themselves? How did people outside the lift help them improve the ventilation in the lift? 6) How do you think the people who were trapped felt when they were finally rescued? |
Sample Question
Ready to try out a question? Let's try out using the content learnt to compose a piece of writing. Mrs Ravi and her children had just returned from a trip to the supermarket. They boarded the lift and were on their way up to their home on the twelfth floor when the lift suddenly stopped. Mrs Ravi and her children were trapped...! Based on the above situation, write a composition of at least 150 words using the following points: -Why the lift stopped moving -What did Mrs Ravi and the children do when they realised that they were trapped - What happened in the end You may reorder the points and / or include your own. |
For samples of suggested compositions written for this question, please buy my ... Kidding. They are available at 'Collection of Suggested Compositions' or HOME page. |