Prisoners escape jail after earthquake
Listen to the story (Hong Kong accent)
More than 200 prisoners got out of a big jail. They got out when there was an earthquake. It was in Pakistan on Tuesday.
The prisoners were scared. They thought the jail will fall down. They broke doors and windows and ran out.
Police caught 80 prisoners. More than 130 prisoners are still not caught. One prisoner died. Two security guards got hurt.
A jail worker said prisoners shouted at night. Police shot guns in the air to warn the prisoners.
Some prisoners went back to their rooms. But 216 prisoners ran to the gate. They wanted to get out.
Police are looking for the missing prisoners.
The jail is called Malir Jail. It is very full with too many prisoners. It can hold 2,200 people, but 5,000 people are there now.
Ali Hassan Zardari, the prison boss, wants to know what happened.
Families are outside the jail. They are angry because they cannot visit prisoners now.
Vocabulary15 words
- Prisoner
- A person kept in prison/jail because they broke a law; a person who is kept in prison as a punishment; a person who is under the control of someone else and not physically free
- Jail
- a place where people are held/kept as punishment for a crime; a building for bad people
- Earthquake
- a natural event where the ground shakes and moves suddenly and strongly, caused by the movement of rocks deep beneath the earth's surface
- Scared
- Feeling afraid; frightened; the feeling when something scares you
- Police
- People who work to keep us safe and enforce laws; ?
- Catch
- To capture or trap something; Grab something or someone; to take something that doesn’t want to go with you; to find and take someone
- Security guard
- A person who watches and protects a place
- Shout
- yell; scream; say something loudly
- Shoot
- To fire a gun; when you use a gun to make bullets go out and hit something
- Gun
- a machine or tool that shoots bullets; ?
- Warn
- to tell someone about something bad or dangerous that might happen; alert; notify
- Gate
- a door or entrance to a place, like a stadium or a park
- Missing
- can’t be found; not present; absent or lost; nobody can find it
- Called
- Named; To give something a name
- Angry
- Feeling mad or upset; ??
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
More than _____ prisoners got out of a big jail. They got out when there _____ an earthquake. It was in Pakistan on _____.
The prisoners were _____. They thought the jail will fall down. They broke doors and _____ and ran out.
Police caught 80 prisoners. _____ than 130 prisoners are still not caught. One prisoner _____. Two security guards got hurt.
A jail worker _____ prisoners shouted at night. Police shot guns in the _____ to warn the prisoners.
Some prisoners went _____ to their rooms. But 216 prisoners ran to the gate. _____ wanted to get out.
Police are looking for the _____ prisoners.
The jail is called Malir Jail. _____ is very full with too many prisoners. It can hold 2,200 people, but _____ people are there now.
Ali Hassan Zardari, the _____ boss, wants to know what happened.
_____ are outside the jail. They are angry because they cannot _____ prisoners now.
Discussion questions
- Do you think it was right for the prisoners to try to escape when the earthquake happened? Why or why not?
- The jail is very full. Do you think this is a big problem? Why?
- What do you think the police should do to find the prisoners who are still missing?
- If you were a family member, would you be angry about not being able to visit the jail? Why?
- Do you think the jail workers did a good job during the earthquake? Why or why not?
- What is one important thing we can learn from this story?
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