[00:01.080]--- Lesson 62 After the fire
[00:06.480]--- First listen and then answer the question.
[00:12.640]--- What was the danger to the villages after the fire?
[00:20.000]Firemen had been fighting the forest fire for nearly three weeks before they could get it under control.
[00:28.760]A short time before, great trees had covered the countryside for miles around.
[00:36.160]Now, smoke still rose up from the warm ground over the desolate hills.
[00:43.760]Winter was coming on and the hills threatened the surrounding villages with destruction,
[00:50.720]for heavy rain would not only wash away the soil but would cause serious floods as well.
[00:59.280]When the fire had at last been put out,
[01:02.760]the forest authorities ordered several tons of a special type of grass-seed which would grow quickly.
[01:11.080]The seed was sprayed over the ground in huge quantities by aeroplanes.
[01:18.760]The planes had been planting seed for nearly a month when it began to rain.
[01:25.400]By then, however, in many places the grass had already taken root.
[01:31.680]In place of the great trees which had been growing there for centuries, patches of green had begun to appear in the blackened soil.
[01:42.760]--- end