Our Beautiful Town is Gone

Which line from the passage helps show why it is hard to evacuate Paradise?

• "California has always had wildfires"

• "No one was allowed back in Paradise for nearly six weeks."

• "The roads were jammed packed with traffic."

• "Schools were set up in nearby towns."

What is the main idea of the section "Life Continues"?

• Scientists have figured out what started the fire.

• People are moving on with their lives after the fire.

• Many people tried to leave Paradise during the fire.

• Trees are growing again in the forest where the fire started.

The supermarket parking lot was a safe place because it was

• far from the fire.

• filled with people.

• protected by firefighters.

• surrounded by rivers and ponds.

Which line helps explain why people in Paradise started to panic over the fire?

• "California has always had wildfires."

• "The last five years were the hottest on record."

• "Every second, it burned through a chunk of land the size of a football field."

• "He then climbed onto a fire truck with two other firefighters."

Why weren't people worried after seeing the plume of smoke?

• The fire seemed far away.

• They thought it was a cloud.

• Firefighters were already fighting the fire.

• They knew they could easily get to another town.

What was the first sign that there was a fire?

• ash falling from the sky.

• the morning sky was turning dark

• trees burning like giant torches

• a plume of smoke rising out of the forest

This article is mainly about:

• the history of Paradise, California.

• how wildfires have changed over time.

• wildfires around America.

• how people in Paradise reacted to a fire.

The wildfire was able to spread across the river because of the:

• dry grass.

• tall trees.

• wet grounds.

• strong winds.

What conclusion can you draw from "Our Beautiful Town is Gone"?

• People survive disasters only when they focus on their own safety.

• People in Paradise helped each other to get through difficult times.

• Forest fires are unusual in California.

• Forest fires are impossible to contain.

The author's purpose for writing this article was probably to:

• persuade readers to become firefighters.

• give directions to follow for escaping a fire.

• describe the different ways that fires can start.

• explain how a wildfire affected the people of one town.