美国国家公共电台 NPR 为什么科罗拉多州很难找到野火的起因？

Why does Colorado have such a hard time finding the cause of wildfires?

Transcript¹

Colorado is investigating the cause of last week's wildfire. The state, however, doesn't have a very good track record when it comes to determining the cause of those fires.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Officials are still looking for the cause of last week's devastating² wildfire in Colorado. Nearly a thousand homes and businesses burned down. Boulder³ County Sheriff Joe Pelle is in charge of the fire investigation⁴. And at a news conference yesterday, he didn't give many details.

(SOUNDBITE OF NEWS CONFERENCE)

JOE PELLE: You're going to lose your patience with me. But hopefully, in weeks or a month or two months, we'll be able to tell you what happened and why. And it will be good, accurate information.

MARTIN: Colorado actually doesn't have a very good track record for finding the cause of wildfires. In fact, it's got the worst record of any Western state. Colorado Public Radio's Sam Brasch was part of an investigation into that, and he joins us this morning. Sam, thanks for being here.

SAM BRASCH, BYLINE⁵: Good morning.

MARTIN: So we know hurricane-force winds spread the fire quickly. But beyond that, is there any early indication at all as to what started this?

BRASCH: You know, very little. There is a lot of speculation⁶ and chatter⁷ on social media at this point. This after Sheriff Joe Pelle of Boulder County said that downed power lines were likely to cause. He's since retracted⁸ that and now is only saying it's an open investigation and that dozens of people are being interviewed about it.

MARTIN: You and your colleagues found that over the last couple of decades, Colorado authorities haven't been very good at figuring out what's behind wildfires like this, right?

BRASCH: That's right. Investigators⁹ have only found the cause of large, human-caused wildfires about 43% of the time that's the worst rate of any Western state. And big prominent fires remain unsolved, too, like the 2020 Cameron Peak Fire and the East Troublesome Fire. These are the first- and second-largest in state history. And that bugs¹⁰ some law enforcement officials. Here's Steve Nowlin. He's the sheriff of Montezuma County in southwest Colorado. And he's one of the few local law enforcement officers with a deputy trained in wildfire investigations¹¹.

STEVE NOWLIN: We just want answers just like everybody else. I do. I want to know how it started and why and who's responsible for that. That's so very, very important. It really is. And especially if you have loss of life, oh, yeah, that's a serious crime. And there needs to be consequences and people held accountable for that.

MARTIN: So why is it so tough to find the cause of wildfires in Colorado?

BRASCH: It's clear that a lack of resources is a big reason. Many counties don't have any trained fire investigators. And our investigation found that the state itself has six investigators to assist local law enforcement. And that's not even close to other Western states. Utah, for example, has twice that number. Other experts my colleagues spoke¹² to who say that investigation is essential. If you don't know what starts fires in an area, it's a lot tougher to prevent the next one. But it appears they are taking this one more seriously in Boulder County. The FBI is assisting, as is the Forest Service.

MARTIN: So what are potential mitigation steps that the state or local communities could take on?

BRASCH: I think one that's potentially on the table is how Colorado builds new housing and protects existing housing. This is a rapidly growing state. And unlike other Western states, it doesn't have a minimum building code for homes in areas vulnerable to wildfires. That's something one state lawmaker I know plans to introduce in the upcoming legislative¹³ session. They planned to do that even before these fires hit, so I expect it'll be an even more urgent discussion now.

MARTIN: Colorado Public Radio's Sam Brasch, thank you.

BRASCH: Thank you.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

3 boulder   

n.巨砾；卵石，圆石

参考例句：

• We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲，把大石头搬开了。
• He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。

4 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

7 chatter   

vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战

参考例句：

• Her continuous chatter vexes me.她的喋喋不休使我烦透了。
• I've had enough of their continual chatter.我已厌烦了他们喋喋不休的闲谈。

8 retracted   

v.撤回或撤消( retract的过去式和过去分词 )；拒绝执行或遵守；缩回；拉回

参考例句：

• He made a false confession which he later retracted. 他作了假供词，后来又翻供。
• A caddy retracted his statement. 一个球童收回了他的话。 来自辞典例句

9 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 bugs   

adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误

参考例句：

• All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

12 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

13 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。