Talk Icon

Practice 100+ speaking topics!

Star rating icon

4.2

1M+ Installs

Get App

leap-scholar-logo
hamburger-menu

The Megafires of California Reading Answers: IELTS Reading Practice Test

updated at

Updated on Jul 02, 2024, 11:57

In this practice test of the IELTS reading module, we will explore the topic ‘The Megafires of California.’ The city of California has experienced some of the most destructive wildfires in recent years, which have threatened animal and human lives. 
 

This megafires of California practice test will provide insights into the impacts of megafires on the environment, wildlife, and human health. You will also learn about the impact of climate change, human activities, and natural factors on the frequency and intensity of wildfires. 
 

The IELTS reading test is one of the IELTS exam modules which assesses the reading skills of individuals who intend to study or work in a foreign nation. In this module, you will be given passages and answer questions based on them.

On This Page

Arrow right
Slider image

1. The Megafires Of California Reading Passages

You should spend approximately 20 minutes answering Questions 1 - 13 based on the Reading Passage below.

Slider image

2. The Megafires Of California Reading Question & Answers

Discover The Megafires Of California IELTS reading answers.

More for you

Boost your IELTS Reading score

Book Free Reading class arrow right

See how to score 8+ in Speaking. 

 

Get proven strategies to ace your IELTS Speaking test.

Learn More arrow right
3/3
1.

The Megafires Of California Reading Passages

 

The general instructions for IELTS Reading are as follows:

  • The reading module will cover 3 passages, each containing 13-14 questions. In total, it will be 40 questions.
  • Each question will carry one mark and no negative marking.
  • The total time allocated for the module will be 60 minutes.
  • Learning to skim the passages to get a general idea of the topic.
  • Manage your time wisely so that you can answer all the questions.
  • If you have time, review your answers before submitting the test.

 

 

 

 

The Megafires Of California Reading Passage

 

 

A. There’s a reason fire squads now battling more than a dozen blazes in southern California are having such difficulty containing the flames, despite better preparedness than ever and decades of experience fighting fires fanned by the notorious Santa Ana winds. Experts say the wildfires are generally hotter, move faster, and spread more erratically than in the past.

 

B. The short-term explanation is that the region, which usually has dry summers, has had nine inches less rain this year. Longer term, climate change across the West is leading to hotter days on average and longer fire seasons. Experts say this is likely to yield more mega fires like the conflagrations that this week forced evacuations of at least 300,000 residents in California’s southland and led President Bush to declare a disaster emergency in seven counties on Tuesday.

 

C. Megafires, also called “siege fires,” are the increasingly frequent blazes that burn 500,000 acres or more – 10 times the size of the average forest fire of 20 years ago. One of the current wildfires is the sixth biggest in California ever, in terms of acreage burned, according to state figures and news reports. The trend to more superhot fires, experts say, has been driven by a century-long policy of the US Forest Service to stop wildfires as quickly as possible. The unintentional consequence was to halt the natural eradication of underbrush, now the primary fuel for megafires. Three other factors contribute to the trend, they add. First is climate change marked by a 1 -degree F. rise in average yearly temperature across the West. Second is a fire season that on average, is 78 days longer than in the late 1980s. The third is the increased building of homes and other structures in wooded areas.

 

D. “We are increasingly building our homes … in fire-prone ecosystems,” says Dominik Kulakowski, adjunct professor of biology at Clark University Graduate School of Geography in Worcester, Mass. Doing that “in many of the forests of the Western US … is like building homes on the side of an active volcano.” In California, where population growth has averaged more than 600,000 a year for at least a decade, housing has pushed into such areas. “What once was open space is now residential homes providing fuel to make fires burn with greater intensity,” says Terry McHale of the California Department of Forestry firefighters union. “With so much dryness, so many communities to catch fire, so many fronts to fight, it becomes an almost incredible job.”

 

E. That said, many experts give California high marks for making progress on preparedness since 2003, when the largest fires in state history scorched 750,000 acres, burned 3,640 homes, and killed 22 people. Stung then by criticism of bungling that allowed fires to spread when they might have been contained, personnel are meeting the peculiar challenges of the neighborhood- and canyon-hopping fires better than in recent years, observers say.

 

F. State promises to provide newer engines, planes, and helicopters have been fulfilled. Firefighters unions that then complained of dilapidated equipment, old fire engines, and insufficient blueprints for fire safety are now praising the state’s commitment, noting that funding for firefighting has increased despite huge cuts in many other programs. “We are pleased that the Schwarzenegger administration has been very proactive in its support of us and come through with budgetary support of the infrastructure needs we have long sought,” says Mr. McHale with the firefighters union.

 

G. Besides providing money to upgrade the fire engines that must traverse the mammoth state and wind along serpentine canyon roads, the state has invested in better command-and-control facilities as well as the strategies to run them. “In the fire sieges of earlier years, we found out that we had the willingness of mutual-aid help from other jurisdictions and states, but we were not able to communicate adequately with them,” says Kim Zagaris, chief of the state’s Office of Emergency Services, fire and rescue branch. After a 2004 blue-ribbon commission examined and revamped those procedures, the statewide response “has become far more professional and responsive,” he says.

 

H. Besides ordering the California National Guard on Monday to make 1,500 guardsmen available for firefighting efforts, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger asked the Pentagon to send all available Modular Airborne Fighting Systems to the area. The military Lockheed C- 130 cargo/utility aircraft carry a pressurized 3,000-gallon tank that can eject fire retardant or water in fewer than five seconds through two tubes at the rear of the plane. This load can cover an area 1/4- mile long and 60 feet wide to create a fire barrier. Governor Schwarzenegger also directed 2,300 inmate firefighters and 170 custody staff from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to work hand in hand with state and local firefighters.

 

I. Residents and government officials alike are noting the improvements with gratitude, even amid the loss of homes, churches, businesses, and farms. By Tuesday morning, the fires had burned 1,200 homes and businesses and set 245,957 acres — 384 square miles — ablaze. Despite such losses, there is a sense that the speed, dedication, and coordination of firefighters from several states and jurisdictions are resulting in greater efficiency than in past “siege fire” situations.

 

J. “I am extraordinarily impressed by the improvements we have witnessed between the last big fire and this,” says Ross Simmons, a San Diego-based lawyer who had to evacuate both his home and business on Monday, taking up residence at a Hampton Inn 30 miles south of his home in Rancho Bernardo. After fires consumed 172,000 acres there in 2003, the San Diego region turned communitywide soul-searching into improved building codes, evacuation procedures, and procurement of new technology. Mr. Simmons and his neighbors began receiving automated phone calls at 3:30 a.m. Monday morning, telling them to evacuate. “Notwithstanding all the damage that will be caused by this, we will not come close to the loss of life because of what we have … put in place since then,” he says.

2.

The Megafires Of California Reading Question & Answers

Discover The Megafires Of California IELTS reading answers.

Questions and Answers 1-6

The Megafires Of California Reading Questions (1-6)

 

Type of question: Choose one word and/or a number
In boxes 1–6 on your megafires of California reading answers sheet, choose one word and/or a number from the passage for each answer.

 

Characteristics of wildfires and wildfire conditions today compared to the past:

 

• Occurrence: more frequent

• Temperature: hotter 

• Speed: faster 

• Movement: (1)……………………more unpredictably 

• Size of fires: (2)……………………….greater on average than two decades ago 

 

Reasons wildfires cause more damage today compared to the past: 

 

• Rainfall: (3)…………………..average 

• More brush to act as (4)………………….. 

• Increase in yearly temperature 

• Extended fire (5)………………….. 

• More building of (6)……………………….in vulnerable places


 

The Megafires Of California Reading Answers with Explanations (1-6)


 

Type of question: Choose one word and/or a number
 

In this task, you will be required to choose a single word or a number as the megafires of California reading answers.
 

How to find the answers: 

 

  • Read the given question statements carefully and note down the keywords.
  • Identify whether the question asks for a single word, a number, or both.
  • Locate the keywords in the passage, which will help you find the right word and/or number. 

 

1. Spread

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph A: “The wildfires themselves, experts say, are generally hotter, faster, and spread more erratically than in the past.”
 

Explanation

In paragraph A, the experts discuss wildfires, highlighting that they have become hotter, faster, and spread more erratically compared to previous occurrences. Just as "hotter" describes temperature and "faster" pertains to speed, the word "spread" corresponds to the characteristic of movement, making it the appropriate answer.

 

2. 10 times

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph B: “Megafires, also called ‘siege fires’, are the increasingly frequent blazes that burn 500,000 acres or more - 10 times the size of the average forest fire of 20 years ago.”

 

Explanation

Paragraph B states that megafires today are ten times bigger than the average forest fires twenty years ago. This comparison directly relates to the question's inquiry about fire size changes over the past two decades.

 

3. Below

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph C: “One explanation for the trend to more superhot fires is that the region, which usually has dry summers, has had significantly below normal precipitation in many recent years.”
 

Explanation

Paragraph C talks about how much rain falls nowadays compared to recent times. The question also asks about rainfall compared to previous years. So, both discuss rain amounts over time, making "below" the right answer as it compares current precipitation rates to those in the past.
 

4. Fuel

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph D: “The unintentional consequence was to halt the natural eradication of underbrush, now the primary fuel for megafires.”
 

Explanation 

Paragraph D tells us that the main thing that feeds megafires is 'brush.' Our question also mentions brushes as a reason why wildfires are more harmful now and asks how "more brushes act as ___." The word 'fuel' from the paragraph helps to clarify this blank, fitting the question's context perfectly.

 

5. Season

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph C: “Second is a fire season that, on average, is 78 days longer than in the late 1980s.”

 

Explanation 

Paragraph C highlights that the lengthened fire season contributes to the increase in megafires compared to previous times, now lasting 78 days longer than in the 1980s. The question's mention of an "extended fire" corresponds well with the term "season," emphasising that the prolonged fire season is indeed a significant factor behind the rise in megafires.
 

6. Homes

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph C: “The third is the increased building of homes and other structures in wooded areas.”
 

Explanation 

The third cause behind the increase in megafires is explained as the ‘homes’ in paragraph C. This particular sentence perfectly fills up the blank line in the question ‘more building of …. in vulnerable places’, which is grammatically and factually correct, too. Thus, it is the correct answer. 

Questions and Answers 7-13
Type of question: True/False/Not Given
In boxes 7-13 on your answer sheet, write:

  • TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
  • FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
  • NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

 

7. The amount of open space in California has diminished over the last ten years.  

8. Many experts believe California has made little progress in readying itself to fight fires.  

9.   Personnel in the past have been criticised for mishandling fire containment.  

10. California has replaced a range of firefighting tools.  

11. More firefighters have been hired to improve fire-fighting capacity.  

12. Citizens and government groups disapprove of the efforts of different states and agencies working together.  

13. Randy Jacobs believes that loss of life from fires will continue at the same levels, despite changes made.


 

The Megafires of California Reading Answers with Explanations (7-13)


 

Type of question: TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN
 

In this task, you are given a set of statements which you should answer based on your understanding of the passage. 
 

You can assess whether the statement given in the question is:
 

TRUE                if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE              if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN     if there is no information on this


 

How to find the megafires of California reading answers: 
 

  • Read the given question statements carefully and note down the keywords
  • Locate the keywords in the passage, which will help you decide whether the given statement is true or false. 
  • Your answer will not be given if the information is not in the passage.


 

7. True

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph D: “What once was open space is now residential homes providing fuel to make fires burn with greater intensity.”
 

Explanation

‘The amount of open space in California has diminished over the last ten years’ is true. The context given in paragraph D supports this statement by explaining that residential homes now occupy areas that were once open spaces. 


 

8. False

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph E: “That said, many experts give California high marks for making progress on preparedness in recent years.”
 

Explanation

Paragraph E explains that many experts have given high marks to California for making progress, which is the opposite of the statement: ‘Many experts believe California has made little progress in readying itself to fight fires.’ Hence, the answer is false


 

9. True

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph E: “Stung then by criticism of bungling that allowed fires to spread when they might have been contained, personnel are meeting the peculiar challenges.”
 

Explanation

Paragraph E explicitly critiques the personnel for their inability to prevent the fires from spreading. This aligns perfectly with the statement posed in the question, which asserts that personnel have faced criticism for mishandling fire containment in the past. Therefore, the statement is true based on the content of paragraph E.


 

10. True

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph F: “State promises to provide more up-to-date engines …… old fire engines, and insufficient blueprints for fire safety are now praising the state's commitment.”
 

Explanation

Paragraph E says that California is getting new and better equipment to help stop fires from spreading. This new equipment will replace the old stuff that didn't work well. This matches the statement in the question that says California has replaced some firefighting tools. So, the statement is true.

 

11. Not Given

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph: Not available 
 

Explanation

There is nowhere mentioned in the passage that more firefighters have been hired to improve the fire-fighting capacity. 

 

12. False

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph I: “There is a sense that the speed, dedication, and coordination of firefighters from several states and jurisdictions are resulting in greater efficiency than in past “siege fire” situations.
 

Explanation

Paragraph I explains how firefighters work hard to deal with the state's megafire situation. This differs from what the question says: citizens disapprove of the government and agencies working together. So, the statement in the question is false


 

13. False

 

Reference

 

From Paragraph J: “We will no longer suffer the loss of life endured in the past because of the fire prevention and firefighting measures that have been put in place.”
 

Explanation

Paragraph J mentions Randy Jacobs saying that we can reduce the impact of megafires and won't face the same challenges as before. This goes against the question, which is that Randy Jacobs believes there will still be the same number of deaths from fires, even with changes. So, the answer is false.

 

The megafires of California reading answers practice test will help you prepare for the IELTS reading test. Check out our IELTS Reading practice test page to prepare for more topics.
 

If you want to excel in the IELTS test, you can join our free masterclass, where you can attend IELTS sessions by top educators.  

ielts logo

Get the IELTS Prep App

Star rating icon

4.2

1M+ Installs

app download banner image

Get the app link on your phone

+91

Or download app from

google play storeapp store

Next Up

IELTS Practice Test

Read Now Read now

IELTS Listening Practice Test

Read Now Read now

IELTS Reading Practice Test

Read Now Read now

IELTS Speaking Practice Test

Read Now Read now

IELTS Writing Practice Test

Read Now Read now

Top Reading Samples with Answers

IELTS Important Information

Read More about IELTS Practice Test

IELTS Accepting Universities

IELTS Test Centre and Dates in India

IELTS Accepting Countries

FAQs

Q. What are some effective reading strategies for the IELTS Reading test?

A. Some of the proven strategies that can help you perform best in the IELTS reading test are:

 

  • Scanning the content for the main ideas
  • Identifying the keywords and phrases
  • Understanding the structure of the different passages (ex, chronological order, cause and effect). 
     

In addition to the above points, reading the questions and instructions and quickly finding the answers is essential. 

Q. How can I improve my vocabulary for the IELTS Reading test?

A. The best way to improve your vocabulary is by reading. You should read various materials such as newspapers, novels, and articles. While reading, you will encounter many new words and phrases. So note them and their meanings and try to use them whenever you like while writing something or talking to friends. This will help you retain these unique words and gradually increase your word power. 

Q. What is the minimum preparation time required for the IELTS Reading test?

A. Many factors decide how you prepare for your IELTS test, like your aim (the score you want to achieve) and your proficiency level. You must devote extra time to achieving good marks if you are a beginner. Similarly, if you want to score above 7.5 or 8, you need enough practice to reach the goal. Usually, preparation takes a few weeks to a few months, depending on the factors we discussed. 

Q. Does the IELTS Reading Module have a negative marking?

A. No, the IELTS Reading module does not have a negative marking. This means you will earn points for correct answers. Hence, feel free to attempt all questions, even if uncertain. Logical guesses are encouraged, as there's no penalty for incorrect responses. Correct answers earn marks without deductions for wrong ones. So, take educated guesses confidently, maximising your chances of scoring higher without fear of losing marks.

Q. How can I score better on my IELTS Reading test?

A. To improve your IELTS reading test, practice and do sample tests to get used to the questions. Time yourself to see how long it takes and try to go faster each time. Look at what you got wrong before and learn from it. This way, you'll get better and more confident at answering the questions on the actual test.

Q. Can I retake the IELTS Reading test alone?

A. Yes, you can retake the IELTS reading test alone. The IELTS authority has launched the ‘skill retake option’ that allows you to retake the tests in any of the 4 modules (reading, speaking, listening, and writing) where you want to enhance your score. 

Q. Is the IELTS Reading test difficult to score?

A. The IELTS reading score seems complicated due to the varied question format, but it is simple. Though you might find it challenging, you will find it manageable with practice. You can also attend the IELTS masterclass to understand how to build an effective strategy and score better in the IELTS. 

Q. How can I improve my reading speed for the IELTS Reading test?

A. If you want to improve your reading skills, start practising daily. Use methods like skimming and scanning the passages to grasp the main ideas quickly. Start with the low-difficulty level passages and then go with the difficult ones to make yourself compatible with the IELTS exam reading questions. 

Q. How can I answer multiple choice questions for the IELTS Reading test?

A. First, you need to read the question and the answers carefully. Then, highlight the keywords and identify the main idea of the question. Then, move to the passage and find the keywords and specific information that match the question. Finally, choose the suitable option that better aligns with the question. Make sure that this practice doesn’t take too long to answer a single question. Learn time management skills to ensure you can find the answer within the given time frame.

Q. What are some good resources for improving my reading skills in general?

A. To get better at reading, read things you enjoy, like newspapers, blogs, novels, or magazines. This helps you learn new words and understand different writing styles. Try to read regularly to improve even more. Also, talk about what you've read with friends or family to understand it better and remember more. Keep reading what you like, and you'll see yourself improving!

Q. What is the band score range for the IELTS Reading module?

A. Your score on the IELTS Reading test can range between 0 and 9. It's based on how well you answer the questions. This score shows how good you are at reading in English. The more you practice, the better your score can be. So, keep practising to improve your reading skills and get a higher score!