学进去

The day had started out as usual for Mrs. Ito until the late afternoon, when the news of the destructive tsunami waves came over the radio.

At last, 12:30 a.m. came as the radio warning had said and nothing happened. She could hear passing people say the tsunami waves must have missed the islands and they laughed as they were returning to their homes. Mrs. Ito went into her living room and looked down the street. It was calm.

Then, a sudden flash-like lighting lit the sky over Hilo Bay and a deafening explosion broke the night’s silence. The first large wave of the tsunami had burst Hilo’s electric power plant. Suddenly, all the lights in Hilo went out.

Next thing Mrs. Ito heard was a rumbling sound. Before she knew it, the wave roared into her house. She was knocked to the floor as her house began to spin (旋转) and finally tore apart. Terrible yelling and crying sounds came from her neighbors’ homes. Desperately, Mrs. Ito grasped for anything to stay above water. Suddenly, something heavy fell on her. The floorboards opened up and she became trapped. She used every bit of strength in her body to struggle out of the boards and managed to squeeze free. Then she blacked out.

When she woke up, she found herself being washed back and fourth as the water rose. She couldn’t see anyone else and listened for the sound of ocean waves. There were no waves, so she figured she had to be floating over flooded land. Mrs. Ito carefully tried to stretch her foot to touch bottom but it was too deep. Not knowing how to swim, she hung on tight to her tiny makeshift (临时的) raft.

At sunrise, she spotted two boats on the horizon. She saw in the distance a radio station tower light. She remained at peace and kept her head down. She thought that death was just a matter of time away. She thought the people on the boats hadn’t seen her. Then the boats came closer and closer. Mrs. Ito was seen and saved.