Objective Proficiency p 24. Severe Storm Hits Mallorca. Extra Cloze

Heavens 1__________! 
Flash 2_________ as severe storm hits and rain 3_______ down

A severe storm that was bearing 4__________ on the south-east coast of Mallorca was really packing 5___________ wallop. It was bringing with it ferocious 6__________ and heavy rain.
Before it 7_____________ landfall, thousands of residents and tourists 8__________ were bracing 9_________ the full impact. They feared it would bring power 10__________, that's why many people were indoors hunkering 11_____________.
At the same time that many people were battening down the 12___________, severe storms almost brought Palma to a 13________________.
Within minutes the main shopping street was turned into a fast-flowing 14__________.
High 15__________ and rain 16___________ chaos and damage with most side 17_________ under deep 18____________ and small shops flooded out.
One moment it was a pleasant afternoon, the next the skies turned black, 19_________ boomed and 20_____________ struck, then the 21______________ opened.
Both visitors and locals 22____________ sanctuary in the shops as the floodwater roared 23_________Jaume III.
Traffic cones, palm trees, flip-flops and shoes were 24________ down the street. Tiles 25________ spouts were blown from the rooftops.
Soaked holidaymakers, who earlier had been basking 26_______ the sun, couldn't believe their 27________.
"I have been coming to Palma for 20 years and have seen nothing 28________ it, " said Margaret Ramsay. "The storm came out of 29____________ and everyone ran for 30________. It was a scene 31_______ utter panic."
Holidaymaker Lisa Hardy, from Newcastle, said " When I ran I lost a flip-flop in the panic."
Her daughter Chloe Angel, 13, said: "The parents were concerned, but the kids loved splashing 32___________ and did not realise the potential danger."
In the 33_____________ of the storm, many people had to wait hours to get home. Main roads were flooded and the Paseo Maritimo was badly hit. It was feared that some folk may have missed their cruise ships because of the lengthy delays.
Public transport was hit and there were many jams with nose-to-tail 34____________ . Drivers had to be extremely careful with 35_________ patches even on the main roads.
Most people 36__________ refuge in the C and A store as the floodwaters began to rise.
Staff brought out cardboard boxes to make a paper bridge at the entrance to the store. And it paid 37________. Soaked customers bought jackets and umbrellas.
"We bought two hooded jackets" said Lisa, 44. ¨The store must have done a good trade as it was also their sale day."
The looky 38____________ lads also did a roaring 39_________ with their umbrellas going for sky-high 40____________.

Adapted from EWN

KEY

1. Above  

(Good) Heavens!/ Heavens above! (informal) used to show that you are surprised or annoyed. E.g. Good heavens, what are you doing?

2.  floods

Flash flood: /flʌd/ a sudden flood of water caused by heavy rain. 

3. pours 

pour: /pɔː(r)/ when rain pours down or when it's pouring (with) rain, rain is falling heavily. E.g. The rain continued to pour down. It's pouring outside. It's pouring with rain. 

4. down

bearing down (bear down on somebody/something to move quickly towards somebody/something in a determined or threatening way.

5. a

Pack something (such as a storm) to have something. E.g. A storm packing 75 mph winds swept across the area last night. 

Wallop: /ˈwɒləp/ a heavy powerful hit. Sp. Golpazo. E.g. Hurricane Sandy packs a wallop. 

6. winds

ferocious (/fəˈrəʊʃəs/ very aggressive or violent; very strong. E.g. a ferocious beast/attack/storm) 

7.  made

landfall: the land that you see or arrive at first after a journey by sea or by air. E.g. After three weeks they made landfall on the coast of Ireland.

8. alike

alike: used after you have referred to two people or groups, to mean ‘both’ or ‘equally’. E.g. Good management benefits employers and employees alike. 

9. for 

brace somebody/yourself (for something)/ brace somebody/yourself (to do something) to prepare somebody/yourself for something difficult or unpleasant that is going to happen. Sp. prepararse. E.g. UN troops are braced for more violence. They are bracing themselves for a long legal battle.

10. outages

outage /ˈaʊtɪdʒ/ a period of time when the supply of electricity, etc. is not working. Sp apagón. E.g. a power outage.

11. down

hunker down: to prepare yourself to stay somewhere, keep an opinion, etc. for a long time. Sp. resguardarse, acomodarse. 

12. hatches 

batten down the hatches

1. to prepare yourself for a period of difficulty or trouble. E.g. A natural tendency in times of recession is to batten down the hatches and think about our own needs.

2 (on a ship) to firmly shut all the entrances to the lower part, especially because a storm is expected.

 

13. standstill 

standstill /ˈstændstɪl/ a situation in which all activity or movement has stopped. Halt. E.g. The security alert brought the airport to a standstill. Traffic in the northbound lane is at a complete standstill.

14. river

15. winds

High: greater or better than normal in quantity or quality, size or degree. E.g. The tree blew over in the high winds.

16. caused

17. streets/roads

side street: a less important street leading off a road in a town.

18. water

19. thunder

boom:  to make a loud deep sound. E.g. Outside, thunder boomed and crashed (made a loud noise).

20. lightning

strike, struck, struck  to hit somebody/something hard or with force. E.g. The tree was struck by lightning. 

21. heavens/skies

the heavens opened: it began to rain heavily

22. sought/ took

sanctuary: /ˈsæŋktʃuəri/ safety and protection, especially for people who are being chased or attacked. E.g. Thousands of refugees have sought sanctuary in neighbouring countries. In former times, criminals could take sanctuary inside a church.

23. down

floodwater: (also floodwaters [plural]) water that covers land after there has been a flood. E.g. The floodwaters have now receded.

roar: to move very fast, making a lot of noise. E.g. She put her foot down and the car roared away. A group of young men on motorcycles roared past.

24. swept.

sweep somebody/something + adverb/preposition to move or push somebody/something suddenly and with a lot of force. E.g. The little boat was swept out to sea. Their tent was swept away in the storm. She let herself be swept along by the crowd.  

25. and

spout: /spaʊt/ 

1. a pipe through which water may be carried away.

2. A gargoyle /ˈɡɑːɡɔɪl/: an ugly figure of a person or an animal that is made of stone and through which water is carried away from the roof of a building, especially a church. 

26. in 

Bask (in something): to enjoy sitting or lying in the heat or light of something, especially the sun. Sp. disfrutar del sol. E.g. We sat basking in the warm sunshine. A cat was basking on the windowsill.

27. eyes 

not believe your ears/eyes: (informal) to be very surprised at something you hear/see. E.g. I couldn't believe my eyes when she walked in.

28. like

29.  nowhere 

from (or out of) nowhere: appearing or happening suddenly and unexpectedly. E.g. The car seemed to come out of nowhere.

30. cover/ shelter

run for cover/ shelter E.g. We ran for cover as it started to rain.

31. of

32. around 

splash (+ adverb/preposition) to move through water making drops fly everywhere. E.g. The kids were splashing through the puddles. People were having fun in the pool, swimming or just splashing around.

33. aftermath

aftermath /ˈɑːftəmæθ/ the situation that exists as a result of an important (and usually unpleasant) event, especially a war, an accident, etc. Sp. tras, repercusiones. E.g. A lot of rebuilding took place in the aftermath of the war. The assassination of the Prime Minister and its immediate aftermath.  

34. traffic

nose to tail: if cars, etc. are nose to tail, they are moving slowly in a long line with little space between them.

35. flood

patch:  a small area of something, especially one which is different from the area around it. E.g. damp patches on the wall. Patches of dense fog. We sat in a patch of shade under a tree.

36. sought/took/found

37. off

Pay off: to be successful and bring good results. E.g. all the hard work I had done over the summer paid off.

38.  looky 

looky looky: street vendor

looky: (also lookee or lookie) (alteration of look ye) used to draw attention to what one is about to say. Look! Look here! E.g. Looky there! You’ve gone and broken it. Now, lookie here: we don't appreciate that kind of foul language here. 

39. trade/business

do a roaring trade/business (in something) (informal) to sell a lot of something very quickly. E.g. The ice-cream vendors were doing a roaring trade. The food sellers were doing a roaring trade in spiced sausages

40.  prices

sky-high: very high; too high. E.g. His confidence is still sky-high. Sky-high interest rates.