The British usually expect one or two snowfalls each year but the amount of snow rarely affects everyday life. However, this week Britain has had the worst snow it has seen in around 18 years. Some places had more than 30cm in a day.
The bad weather caused severe disruption. More than 3000 schools had to close as teachers and pupils were unable to get to school. School children weren’t too unhappy about it though as they headed out to play the snow, building snowmen, having snowball fights, sledging and some even snowboarding and skiing.
In London, bus services were withdrawn for a day and tubes and trains were cancelled. Major motorways in the country had to close. Many people were unable to get to work and it is thought the cost of this lost labor is around &1 billion (10 billion yuan) to businesses and the economy.
Anyone who wanted to leave the country had problems too. Runways were closed at all the UK’s major airports because of the amount of snow. Hundreds of flights were cancelled leaving some passengers stranded at airports.
So why is the UK so ill-prepared for snow? The mayor of London, Boris Johnson, explained that there aren’t enough snow –ploughs（铲雪机）and gritters（撒沙机）and it doesn’t make sense to buy such equipment when it snows so infrequently.
The south-east of England was the hardest hit at the beginning of the week but the snow is now moving northwards where the chaos continues.
More ice and snow is forecast throughout the week and the advice from travel and weather organizations is to stay indoors unless you really need to venture out!
小题1: Which of the following facts is FALSE according to the passage?
A．More than 3000 schools had to close for the heavy snow.
B．Major motorways in the country had to close for the bad weather.
C．Runways were closed at all the UK’s major airports for the amount of snow.
D．The government organized to clear the snow away with snow-ploughs and gritters.小题2: What does the underlined phrase venture out probably mean in last paragraph?
A．go out
B．search out
C．take no risks
D．stay indoors小题3: What can we learn from the passage?
A．School children seemed happy to head out to play in the snow though schools had to close.
B．The cost of the lost labor reached around 10 billion yuan to businesses and the economy.
C．Hundreds of flights couldn’t land because the runways were closed at major British airports.
D．Tubes and trains in London were cancelled, but drivers were still driving in main motorways.小题4:What can we infer from the passage?
A．The heavy snow is what the British have been expecting for 18 years.
B．The heavy snow has been a very rare heavy one in the UK for 18 years.
C．The heavy snow doesn't please school children at all.
D．The government isn’t ill-prepared for snow.小题5:Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A．Harsh Winters Visit Britain
B．Heavy Snow Hits the UK
C．Bad Weather Causes Chaos Just in London
D．Heavy Snow Causes Disruption Only in Motorways
