Unit 2.14, Exercise 3, Page 64 the Burning World on the hall floor below the letterbox, he found a thick envelope of government notices.0:01
Ransome carried them into the lounge.0:18
He sat down in an armchair and stared through the patio doors at the dusty earth that had once been his lawn.0:21
Beyond the withered hedges, his neighbour's watchtower rose into the air, but the smoke from the fires veiled the view of the lake and river.0:30
He glanced at the notices.0:40
These described, in order, the end of the drought, the dangers of drinking seawater, and lastly, the correct procedure for reaching the coast.0:43
He stood up and wandered around the house.0:54
In the refrigerator, melted butter ran greasily off the edge of its tray and dripped onto the limp salad below.0:57
The smells of sour milk and bad meat made him close the door.1:06
An ample stock of canned food and cereals stood on the cupboard shelves, and a small reserve of water lay in the roof tank.1:12
But this was due less to good planning than to the fact that, like himself, Judith went out for most of her meals.1:22
There was a quiet tap on the kitchen door.1:30
Ransome went downstairs and found the owner of the green car.1:33
Come in, ransome said with a nod.1:38
The little man stepped into the kitchen.1:41
He walked about stiffly, as if unused to being inside a house.1:44
Are your family all right?1:49
Who's that crazy man by the lake?1:54
Don't worry about him.1:58
He's the one who should be worrying, the little man answered.2:00
Anyone that crazy is going to be in trouble soon.2:04
He waited patiently as ransome filled a 10 litre can from the sink tap.2:07
There was no pressure and the water dribbled in slowly.2:13
When Ransome handed him the can, he seemed to switch himself on, as if he hadn't believed the possibility of receiving the water until he had it in his hands.2:18
Its good of you, Dr. Grady's the name.2:29
This will keep the kids going until we get to the coast.2:34
You look as if you need it.2:38
Its only a hundred miles to the coast.2:40
But I figure the last couple of miles will be really hard going.2:45
Could take us a whole two days, maybe three.2:49
You can't drink seawater.2:51
Getting down onto the beach is only the start.2:53
At the door he added, doctor, things are going to be rough soon, believe me.2:57
You pull out now while you can.3:01
Anyway, keep a place for me on the sand.3:08
He watched Grady wrap the can in his coat and then walk away down the drive, his eyes moving quickly from left to right as he slipped between the cars.3:12
Tired by the empty house, Ransome went out into the drive, deciding to wait for Judith there.3:23
The fine ash settled slowly through the air from the unattended fires.3:30
He climbed into the car, dusting the seats and controls.3:35
He switched on the radio and listened to the news reports of the drought broadcast from the few radio stations still working.3:40
The worldwide drought, now in its fifth month, was the result of a series of regular droughts all over the globe during the previous decade.3:50
Ten years earlier there was a critical food shortage when the seasonal rainfall expected in agricultural areas had failed to come.4:00
The crops failed, and one by one countries as far apart as Canada and France, Kazakhstan and India were turned into dust plains.4:10
The following months brought no more than a few inches of rain, and after two years these farmlands were were totally devastated.4:23
Once the people had moved elsewhere, these new deserts were abandoned for good.4:33
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