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Helicopters might soon be used to fight fires in the city, according to an official from Beijing's fire department.
Yang Xuejun, a senior official with the fire department of Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, said the department planned to purchase two to four helicopters and an aerial ladder truck with a 101-meter arm.
"They are an essential tool to deal with emergencies," he said, adding that the helicopters will also be used in rescue operations.
The type and tonnage of the helicopters is still being decided, which means the date they will enter service is not yet known.
"The current firefighting equipment cannot meet the demands of the city's fast development, so we have to upgrade it," Yang said.
At present, the longest aerial ladder in Beijing is 90 meters.
Most of the stations still use trucks with aerial ladders of 40 to 50 meters. However, the tallest building in the city - China World Trade Center Tower III - is 330 meters high.
In recent years, more and more skyscrapers were built in the capital. According to a Beijing Morning Post report, by the end of last year, Beijing had a total of 8,592 buildings, 58 of which were more than 100 meters high.
Last year’s fire at CCTV tower put the city's inadequate firefighting equipment for tall buildings in the media spotlight. One firefighter died and eight were injured in the blaze. It also caused economic losses of more than 160 million yuan.
Beijing has already spent a considerable amount of money on firefighting equipment in the last five years: 1.36 billion yuan was spent on 422 fire trucks, with the number of foam fire trucks increasing from 55 to 100.
According to the city's fire department, there were 5,577 fire incidents in Beijing in 2009, resulting in 32 deaths and more than 50 injuries. The direct economic loss was 159 million yuan.
Questions:
1. What is Beijing's fire department planning to purchase?
2. What is the longest ladder they have now?
3. What is the tallest building in Beijing?
Answers:
1. Two to four helicopters and an aerial ladder truck with a 101-meter arm.
2. The longest aerial ladder in Beijing is 90 meters.
3. China World Trade Center Tower III, 330 meters.
（中國日報網(wǎng)英語點津 Helen 編輯）
About the broadcaster:
Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.
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