Teenager Brian Robeson Was Travelling from the USA to Canada to See His Father. He Was

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Survival!

Teenager Brian Robeson was travelling from the USA to Canada to see his father. He was the only passenger in a small plane, high above the Canadian mountains, when suddenly the pilot had a heart attack and died!

Brian was terrified. He was shaking, but he tried not to panic. Below him, he could see a lake. He turned the plane towards the lake and, incredibly, he landed on the water. Brian got out of the plane just before it sank. He swam to the beach and then he fell asleep, exhausted.

When Brian woke up the next morning, he was cold and hungry. The quiet boy from New York only had the clothes he was wearing and a small hatchet (a present from his mother). Then he remembered a TV programme about how to survive in the wild. He made a shelter with grass and some branches from the trees. He used his hatchet to cut wood and start a fire. He ate fruit from the forest. He made a spear to catch fish in the lake, and he made a bow and arrow to kill rabbits and birds.

One night there was a fierce storm and the plane came to the surface of the lake. Brian swam to the plane and found some food, a knife and a small radio. He tried to call for help on the radio, but he wasn't sure how it worked.

One day, a few weeks later, Brian was fishing by the lake when he heard a noise. He could see a plane above the trees. It was looking for him! Quickly, he made a fire, and the pilot saw the smoke. After fifty-four days in the Canadian woods, Brian's amazing adventure was finally over.

Comprehension check

1 Where was Brian going when his adventure began?

2 Where did he land?

3 Could Brian swim?

4 How did he know how to survive?

5 Where did he sleep?

6 What did he eat?

7 Why did his plane reappear?

8 What did Brian find on the plane?

9 Did he know how to use the radio?

10 What was Brian doing when help arrived?

Choose the best link word, a, b or c, to complete each sentence.

after and before but suddenly then when

1 Brian was flying to the USA the

pilot had a heart attack.

a and b when c then

2 the pilot died. Brian flew the plane.
a Then b After c Suddenly

3 He was terrified, he didn't panic.

a but b then c and

4 He landed on the water swam to
the beach.

a when b and c before

5 he got to the beach, he fell asleep.
a When b Before c But

6 He made a fire and he cooked
some food.

a when b before c then

7 He was fishing and he heard

a noise.

a before b when c suddenly

8 He quickly lit a fire the plane

disappeared.

a then b before c suddenly