Maggie had never experienced an earthquake before, only prepared for it. As long as she could remember, preparing for an earthquake was routine(常规的) at school. Her family as well had made plans in the event of a natural disaster. Earthquakes are so much more common on the West Coast of the United States.
Today Maggie was at home alone. Maggie knew her mom would be driving home on the busy freeway, thinking about preparing supper for Maggie's dad. Maggie's dad would arrive at the airport. He was coming home from a two-week business trip.
Maggie arrived home from school at the regular time. She was taking some biscuits from the kitchen cupboard, when she felt it. First just a tremor(微震), then the violent shaking. Maggie quickly ran under the large, wooden table in the dining room. The sounds of breaking glass and the crashing(坠落) of many things were frightening. But the table remained undamaged, and Maggie hid herself in fear.
After what seemed like a century the earthquake appeared to be over. Maggie could hear the sound of water rushing below her in the basement. The smell of natural gas was present in the air. Maggie knew where the main water valve(阀门) was located. Dad had shown her where it was and how to turn it off. Slowly and carefully she came out from under the table. The once tidy home was now almost unrecognizable. As Maggie reached the open basement door she could see the steps were still in good condition. She carefully made her way down into the dark basement. While still on the steps she felt the water rising and rising. Suddenly Maggie felt a lot of pain as a large ceiling beam (天花板梁) hit her head and shoulder. She fell onto some storage boxes. . .
