Catastrophic collapse
People rescue workers trapped under rubble at the Rana Plaza building in Savar, 30 kilometres outside Dhaka, Bangladesh on April 24. The eight-storey block housing garment factories and a shopping centre collapsed, killing more than 375 people and injuring countless others. — Reuters
Big boost
Rich man donates for disease
Mexico City — Mexican telecommunications tycoon Carlos Slim, who is the world’s wealthiest man according to Forbes magazine, is to contribute $100 million (2.9 billion baht) to a global organisation dedicated to eradicating poliomyelitis within six years, his foundation said on April 25.
The initiative also has the support of the world’s second wealthiest man, Bill Gates, who publicly thanked Carlos at a two-day Global Vaccine Summit that ended on April 25 in Abu Dhabi. — DPA
Shaky ground
Quake hits Papua New Guinea
Sydney — A 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Papua New Guinea on April 24, the US Geological Survey said, but no tsunami warning was issued and no damage was immediately reported.
The strong quake hit at 9:14 am, 31 kilometres north of Rabaul in the Pacific nation’s east, USGS officials said.
Officials added that there was potential for some damage, but that they expected it to be minimal. — AFP
People power
Protesters stand behind a banner during a rally against the Japanese government’s nationalistic ceremony commemorating the day Japan recovered its sovereignty in 1952 after World War II, in Ginowan, Okinawa on April 28. — EPA
Deadly deed
Snake bite kills man
Darwin — A hockey player died in Australia after being bitten by a snake that he picked up.
Karl Berry, 26, reportedly grabbed the deadly brown snake near a training field in the Northern Territory on April 23, believing it was a harmless python, and threw it into some bushes to keep it away from children playing nearby. He then went for a run, not realising the snake had bitten him on the finger, before collapsing, local news reported on April 26.
An ambulance soon arrived, but Karl later died in hospital. — AFP
Hard currency
Rare coin sells for millions
Schaumburg, Illinois — A rare century-old US nickel that was once mistakenly declared a fake has sold at auction for more than $3.1 million (90 million baht). The 1913 Liberty Head nickel is one of only five known to exist.
The coin has an interesting history, as it was surreptitiously and illegally cast, discovered in a car wreck that killed its owner, declared a fake, forgotten in a closet for decades, then declared the real deal.
It was offered for sale by four Virginia siblings at a coin and currency auction on April 25. — AP
Emergency ward
Roof collapses in hospital
Bhopal, India — Two people were killed and 16 injured when the ceiling of a hospital in central India collapsed, trapping patients and employees under the rubble, officials said on April 27.
Rescue workers smashed through giant slabs of concrete and combed through other debris to search for victims after the ceiling of the first floor of the women’s wing of the Kasturba Gandhi Hospital in Bhopal caved in on April 26.
Officials said the casualty toll was not expected to rise and that rescue efforts had been completed. — AFP
EASY NEWS FOR M1-3
Fatal fire
Blaze hits Moscow hospital
Moscow — A fire destroyed a psychiatric hospital. It happened in Moscow, Russia. The blaze killed 38 people. Most of the people were sleeping at the time. — AP
Exercises
1. What happened in Bohopal, India?
a. A fire destroyed a hospital.
b. A hospital ceiling collapsed.
c. An earthquake damaged a hospital.
2. Who is the world’s wealthiest man, according to Forbes magazine?
3. In what province is Watthana Nakhon district located?
Vocabulary
- nationalistic (adj): having very strong feelings of love for and pride in your country, often in an aggressive way that makes you think it is better than any other
tycoon (n): a person who is successful in business or industry and has become rich and powerful
poliomyelitis (n): an infectious disease that affects the central nervous system and can cause temporary or permanent paralysis
minimal (adj): very small in size or amount
psychiatric (adj): relating to psychiatry or to mental illness
python (n): a large tropical snake that kills animals for food by winding its long body around them and crushing them
surreptitiously (adv): done secretly or quickly, in the hope that other people will not notice
cast (v): to shape hit liquid metal, etc. by pouring it into a hollow container
