Tornadoes devastate US states - BBC News Review

Kentucky in the US has been hit by powerful tornadoes that have caused damage, destruction, and loss of life. US President Joe Biden says it was "one of the largest tornado outbreaks in US history".

Rob and Roy discuss this news story and teach you some related vocabulary so you can talk about it too.

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Video chapters:
0:00​​​​​​​​​​ - Introduction
0:36 - Story
1:33 - Headline 1: Kentucky tornado: Entire towns wiped out, says state governor Andy Beshear
5:10 - Headline 2: ‘Hell on Earth’: Shock and survival after deadly tornadoes tear through six US states
8:04 - Headline 3: Tornados leave more than 100 dead in trail of destruction through US Midwest
10:04 - Language summary

Key words and phrases:

wiped out
destroyed; removed from existence

* The dodo, an extinct bird, is thought to have been wiped out by hunters.
* I went home because I felt wiped out after a hard day.

hell on earth
place or situation that is terrible beyond words

* The city became hell on earth when the fighting broke out
* The situation between my business partner and I was hell on earth, so I decided to sell my part of the company to her.

trail of destruction
evidence of damage or chaos caused by something or someone

* The fire left behind it a trail of destruction as it swept through the town.
* My dog got bored and decided to chew the sofa. She left a trail of destruction behind her.

To download the audio and a transcript and test your understanding, go to our website:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/course/newsreview/unit-21/session-224

[Cover: Getty]

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