Table of Contents
BEST IELTS General Reading Test 203
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST 203 – PASSAGE – 3
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST – 203
READING PASSAGE – 3
Saving People from the Sea
Paragraph A: Drowning claims an estimated 372,000 lives around the world each year. This is a conservative estimate and the actual number is likely to be much higher. More than 90 per cent of these drownings happen in low- and middle-income countries. Despite the scale of the problem, it is barely recognised and it’s hard to believe that this is not yet a global priority. The UK-based Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is working to change that. Working in partnership with others, they are expanding their international work to provide communities with the knowledge, equipment and skills to try to reduce this staggering loss of life.
Paragraph B: The islands of Britain and Ireland have always been at the mercy of the sea. In the early 19th century, there was an average of 1800 shipwrecks a year around the coasts of Great Britain, with many seafarers drowned. This danger was an accepted part of life onboard. Rescue services did exist in some places – there are records of a rescue boat stationed in Liverpool from 1730.
IELTS General Reading Test
In Bamburgh, Northumberland, men from the local castle patrolled the shore on horseback, ready to go to sea in their ‘unimmergible’ coble – the first purpose-built lifeboat, designed by Lionel Lukin. A 1789 competition, run by a group of businessmen from Newcastle, sought designs for rescue boats. One of the entries, from William Wouldhave, was designed to self right. Boatbuilder Henry Greathead was asked to build a lifeboat combining the best features of Lukin’s and Wouldhave’s plans, and came up with a vessel called the Original.
Within 20 years, he had built more than 30 of these lifeboats, and they were soon saving lives all around Great Britain.
Paragraph C: Sir William Hillary is credited with founding the RNLI. After witnessing the destruction of dozens of ships from his home on the Isle of Man, and getting involved in rescue attempts himself, Hillary appealed to the Navy, the government and other ‘eminent characters’ for help in forming ‘a national institution for the preservation of lives and property from shipwreck’. With the support of London Members of Parliament (MP) and businesses, the Institution was founded as a charity on 4 March 1824.
IELTS General Reading Test
Paragraph D: When Sir William Hillary first issued his appeal to the British nation in 1823, he sent it out to the Navy and government. He gained great sympathy, but not much cash! It was MP Thomas Wilson who suggested asking wealthy philanthropists to support the fledgling lifeboat service.
Obtaining money in 1824 was very successful, bringing in almost £10,000, but the impetus soon stagnated and, by 1849, income had dropped to £354. Efforts in the mid 19th century were focused on the wealthy, and it wasn’t until the late 1880’s that the RNLI realised how generous the general public could be. Following a tragic disaster in 1886, a public appeal was launched that raised £10,000 in 2 weeks. A little later, there was the first ‘Lifeboat Saturday’.
Bands, floats and lifeboats paraded through the streets of Manchester, followed by volunteers with collecting buckets and purses on poles. More than £5,000 was taken on the day, which was the first recorded example of a charity street collection.
IELTS General Reading Test
Paragraph E: For the RNLI’s first 100 years or so, lifeboats were mostly put to sea and brought in from their local beaches. In many communities, hauling the lifeboat was done by women, as most of the men were on board, though farmers often loaned their horses to help bear the weight. Lifeboats were frequently dragged for long distances before putting to sea to minimise the time at sea in rough conditions.
In 1899, the lifeboat in the village of Lynmouth, Devon, was hauled 10 miles by a team of 50 to 60 people and 18 horses to go to the aid of a vessel in distress in another bay. These days, most large, all-weather lifeboats are designed to go to sea from a slipway, or to lie afloat. But leaving land from the beach is still common, especially with the smaller, inshore lifeboats. Specially adapted tractors are now used to do the hauling.
IELTS General Reading Test
Paragraph F: The way in which people use the sea has changed dramatically since the RNLI’s foundation. More people are using the water for leisure, so the lifesaving service has had to change accordingly. In 2001, RNLI lifeguards began patrolling some of the most popular beaches in England and now lifeguards patrol over 200 beaches around the UK, rescuing thousands of people every year and providing first aid and safety advice.
This ‘prevention-rather-than-cure’ approach also helps the RNLI’s Coastal Safety and Education teams save lives by preventing people from getting into danger in the first place. Also in 2001, the RNLI’s first station on an inland waterway was established in Northern Ireland. Environmental change has increased demand too. The Flood Rescue Team was formed in 2000 to respond to floods anywhere in the UK or Ireland within 6 hours. The RNLI also has an international Flood Rescue Team that can deploy anywhere in the world within 24 hours.
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 28 – 33
The text on the previous pages has 6 paragraphs (A – F).
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below. Write the correct number, i – ix, in boxes 28 – 33 on your answer sheet.
i. Fundraising
ii. Government Support
iii. A Developing Service
iv. A Global Issue
v. A Lesson from America
vi. Early Lifesavers and their Craft
vii. New Training Facilities
viii. Launching
ix. The Beginning of the RNLI
28. Paragraph A
29. Paragraph B
30. Paragraph C
31. Paragraph D
32. Paragraph E
33. Paragraph F
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 34 – 37
Complete each sentence with the correct ending (A – G) below.
Write the correct letter (A – G) in boxes 34 – 37 on your answer sheet.
34. The official figure of people drowned around the world is
35. In the past, the danger of drowning was
36. The lifeboat named “The Original” was
37. The founder of the RNLI was
A. employed by the British navy.
B. motivated by seeing many shipwrecks where he lived.
C. probably grossly under-estimated.
D. more dangerous on navy ships.
E. a mixture of different designs.
F. never accepted by the British navy.
G. always an accepted part of a seafarer’s life.
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 38 – 40
Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.
38. Focusing on the public for early funding of the RNLI was
A. less successful than approaching the rich.
B. advised by British government officials.
C. not a strategy followed at first.
D. the first strategy attempted.
39. Early life boats were often
A. moored at sea to save time.
B. moved on land before being released into the sea.
C. crewed at sea by women when the men were away.
D. crewed by the local military forces.
IELTS General Reading Test
40. The RNLI service has evolved because
A. its initial operating strategy was not financially sustainable.
B. of its dependence on people donating money.
C. people interact with the sea in a different way than before.
D. it is run solely by volunteers.
ANSWERS ARE BELOW
IELTS General Reading Test
ANSWERS
28. iv
29. vi
30. ix
31. i
32. viii
33. iii
34. C
35. G
36. E
37. B
38. C
39. B
40. C