Shadowing Practice: High winds, lack of rain and climate change stoking California fires, say experts | BBC News - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

C1
Well, Los Angeles has, of course,
⏸ Paused
100 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Well, Los Angeles has, of course,
2
been hit by devastating wildfires before,
3
but weather experts say that it's being hit by the most destructive windstorm in decades,
4
with winds of between 80 and 100 miles an hour.
5
So how much of a role has climate change played in this extreme weather?
6
Here's our climate editor, Justin Rowland.
7
Still images show the fury and the horror of the fires engulfing parts of California.
8
Wildfires are a year-round threat in the state,
9
but this year it experienced its hottest summer on record.
10
We know climate change is making the kind of hot,
11
dry weather California has experienced in recent months more likely.
12
And scientists say that is increasing the number of what are known as fire weather days.
13
Now, this graph shows the increase in the area burnt by fires in the US since 1983.
14
As you can see, it appears to have been growing steadily over the years.
15
And there's another factor this year.
16
The winter rains that normally reduce the fire risk in California didn't come.
17
In fact, downtown Los Angeles has only received 0.16 inches of rain since October.
18
That is more than four inches below average.
19
The California governor, Gavin Newsom,
20
believes the pattern of wildfires is changing.
21
We were here not too long ago.
22
The Franklin Fire a few weeks prior to that, the Mountain Fire.
23
November, December, now January.
24
There's no fire season, it's fire year, it's year round.
25
And look how the wind has been blowing the fires.
26
These Santa Ana, or devil winds as they're sometimes called,
27
are a normal part of California weather,
28
caused by cool, dry air blowing from the interior of the state to the coast.
29
Climate change doesn't appear to have altered the pattern of the Santa Ana winds,
30
but as our world warms,
31
the dangerous combination of strong winds with very dry vegetation is becoming more likely.
32
And just look at the scenes on the other side of the country.
33
The East Coast and parts of central US are experiencing icy cold weather
34
and snowstorms that have killed five people and left 60 million under extreme weather warnings the contrast could hardly be more stark.
35
Justin Rowlat, BBC News.
36
Our correspondent Helena Humphrey is in Hollywood and joins us now.
37
Helena, it's easy to think that a wildfire is a rural phenomenon,
38
but this is happening in urban areas.
39
It absolutely is, and I think when you speak to people from Southern California,
40
they'll tell you that they are used to seasonal wildfires wildfires.
41
That isn't something that is new here,
42
but what is new is the scale of what we're seeing.
43
These flames, as you say,
44
reaching urban areas right now.
45
That Pacific Palisades fire, for example,
46
is unprecedented in LA history.
47
And that is because, as Justin was pointing out,
48
these weather patterns are changing, exacerbated by climate change.
49
If you take a look at the conditions here on the ground in January,
50
it's expected to be the wet season.
51
And instead, very little rain in the past eight months.
52
The ground here is tinder dry.
53
And then add to that the topography, of course, of L.A.
54
Just think of the Hollywood Hills.
55
And essentially, you have these canyon-like environments fanned by these hurricane winds of up to 100 miles per hour.
56
And as you can see,
57
that kind of creates a chimney-like effect.
58
And that is what people have been dealing with on the ground.
59
But really, the scale of this is unprecedented.
60
And then on top of that,
61
the fact that you haven't had that water means that fire hydrants,
62
the likes of which you find on the street here,
63
are seeing very low levels.
64
So some fire crews have been trying to use that to hose out the flames,
65
only to find sometimes that they have been running dry.
66
Also, civilian planes going up,
67
attempting to do water drops,
68
including in the Hollywood Hills here behind me and they have found that that thick smoke is also causing turbulence,
69
poor visibility, making fighting these flames,
70
these blazes, all the more difficult.
71
How much warning are people getting that they've got to leave their homes?
72
I'm just thinking about what could they possibly salvage to take with them?
73
Well, they can salvage very little.
74
People I've been speaking to here in the heart of L.A.,
75
places like Sunset Boulevard appear dazed, confused.
76
They are standing there with pet carriers, with their dogs.
77
They're wearing their flip-flops, carrier bags just filled with the bare essentials.
78
They've had to just grab a bag and go.
79
That has been the message.
80
Authorities are saying this is not a drill.
81
If you are told to evacuate,
82
you have to get out.
83
Over 100,000 people have already left.
84
We know that there have been five fatalities,
85
people who didn't necessarily get out on time,
86
although the cause of death has yet to be confirmed.
87
But yes, people are paying attention to the media.
88
They've got an app on their phone for these warnings.
89
We, as we arrived, were in the area of Hollywood where that blaze had sprung up,
90
that sunset fire.
91
We also received the alert on our phone saying that we had to leave that area.
92
So that is what people are encountering right now.
93
And I think they're very much on edge.
94
They're looking at the horizon just a few hours ago,
95
orange haze on that horizon coming towards them.
96
And they're feeling very nervous,
97
even if President Biden says that they'll have all the resources that they need to fight this fire and to rebuild.
98
I think they just don't know what could come in the hours ahead.
99
Helena, for the moment, thank you very much.
100
Helena Humphrey.

Download App

AI scoring for every sentence you speak

Scan To Download
Scan To Download
Download on theApp Store
Get it onGoogle Play
TRENDING

Popular

Why practice speaking with this video?

Practicing your speaking skills with real-world videos, like the BBC News coverage on the California wildfires, offers an incredible opportunity to immerse yourself in natural English. This video highlights not only the urgency of climate issues but also features dialogue among experts and reporters that can enhance your understanding of conversational English. By shadowing the speakers, you can improve your pronunciation and fluency. Using a shadowing app or method helps you mimic intonation and speech patterns, which is crucial for developing your own speaking style. Engaging with this content allows you to build vocabulary around critical topics and encourages discussions about environmental issues, thus enriching both your language skills and your awareness of global concerns.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

Several key grammatical structures and expressions emerge in the video that you can use to enhance your English speaking abilities:

  • Present Perfect Tense: Expressions like "has been hit" indicate ongoing conditions. Using the present perfect can help you describe experiences relevant to the present, which is vital in conversations.
  • Conditional Sentences: The phrase "if climate change is affecting..." sets up hypothetical situations. Learning to use conditionals can significantly deepen your ability to discuss possibilities in English.
  • Descriptive Language: The phrases "devastating wildfires" and "hottest summer on record" exemplify how adjectives amplify your descriptions. Adding emotion and detail to your speech will make your conversations more engaging.
  • Passive Voice: The phrase "the pattern of wildfires is changing" demonstrates how passive voice is used to emphasize the action over the subject. Mastery of this structure will allow you to discuss subjects more fluidly.

Common Pronunciation Traps

Certain words and phrases in the video may present challenges in pronunciation:

  • “California”: The stress on the second syllable can be tricky. Practice saying it slowly, focusing on the “for” part.
  • “Devastating”: This word consists of four syllables and can easily lead to mispronunciation. Pay attention to the segments: "dev-as-ta-ting."
  • “Santa Ana winds”: Practice saying this as a complete phrase. The rhythm of this term is essential; avoid pausing unnaturally between the words.
  • “Winds” vs. “win”: Ensure that you don't confuse these two; the 'd' sound at the end of "winds" is crucial for clarity.

Utilizing a shadow speech technique where you repeat after the speakers will help you master these tricky pronunciations. By practicing with video content such as this, you can enhance both your speaking and listening abilities. Start to learn English with YouTube today and become more fluent in everyday conversations!

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

☕ Buy us a coffee