CAIRO, Egypt (Reuters) April 24, 2006—Three explosions shook the Egyptian Sinai resort of Dahab on Monday, killing 23 people and wounding dozens of others, rescue and security officials said.
Witnesses said smoke billowed①up from the town’s tourist bazaar, and residents said they saw body parts and debris②on the street after an explosion at a restaurant.
People in the small beach and diving resort, which is popular with backpackers, described scenes of carnage③and chaos④.
A cafe worker who was about 200 meters (yards) from the scene said: “We saw many dead people. People were screaming. People were being taken to hospital. Egyptians went to give blood. There were body parts. There’s police everywhere.”
“There are ambulances and cars taking people to hospital,” said another resident, who also did not want to be named.
The explosions took place at the Nelson Restaurant, the Aladdin Cafeteria and the Ghazala Supermarket, the Interior Ministry said.
The explosions took place in quick succession at about 7.15 p.m. (1715 GMT). “There is smoke coming from the area and there are people running everywhere,” said one witness, who heard the blasts.
An official with the local ambulance service said many of the dead appeared to be foreigners.
Israeli divers often stay in the resort but with the Passover holiday over it is unlikely many were there. The Israeli ambassador in Cairo and Israeli authorities said they did not know of any Israeli casualties⑤.
One visitor said police were stopping cars and buses leaving the resort and had imposed restrictions on movements in and out of backpacker camps in the area.
It was the third set of three explosions on the eastern coast of the Sinai peninsula since October 2004, when a group attacked the Hilton hotel in the border resort of Taba and two other resorts on the northeast coast, killing 34 people.
Notes:
① billow v. 翻腾
② debris n. 残骸
③ carnage n. 残杀，流血
④ chaos n. 混乱
⑤ casualty n. （人员）伤亡
小题1: What’s the result of the explosions in Dahab?
A．34 people were killed.
B．There were many Israeli casualties.
C．23 people were killed and dozens of others were injured.
D．Many houses were burned to the ground.小题2:How many places did the explosions take place in?
A．Two
B．Three
C．Six
D．Eight小题3:What does the underlined word “resort” mean?
A．popular holiday centre
B．hotel or guest-house for holidaymakers
C．visiting some place
D．Making use of something for help小题4:Which of the following statements is right?
A．Many of the dead appeared to be residents.
B．The first set of three explosions took place in October 2004.
C．Police couldn’t know what to do.
D．Israeli divers stayed in the resort with the Passover holiday over.
