A Tennessee family must decide how to move forward after devastating floods

搜索

复制

A Tennessee family must decide how to move forward after devastating¹ floods

Transcript²

As climate change upends Americans' lives, we follow one family in Waverly, Tenn., following an August flood that killed 20 people and destroyed much of the town.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

In 2021, climate-driven weather disasters swept across the U.S. There was a weeklong heatwave in Washington state, historic wildfires in Colorado and extreme cold in Texas. That's just to name three. Some of these events pushed entire communities out of their homes, leaving thousands trying to rebuild their lives. Damon Mitchell with member station WPLN has been following one family near Nashville who survived a flood that killed 20 people.

DAMON MITCHELL, BYLINE³: Gretchen Turner is standing⁴ in the driveway of her two-story Craftsman-style home. She's gathered with about a half-dozen volunteers. They're looking back on the day of the flood.

GRETCHEN TURNER: God's hand is in all this.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Oh, it is.

G TURNER: There's no doubt. And we lost 20 lives, but there were probably 2,000 miracles that day.

MITCHELL: Gretchen is one of many longtime Waverly residents trying to figure out how to move her family forward after the flood and whether to rebuild or leave an area that she's been in since she was a kid. The rush of water made her home unlivable. The entire first floor had to be gutted⁵. With the floors and wall stripped, it's now a construction site.

I first met Gretchen about a week after the flooding hit, when her neighbors were trying to gather what was left. She was mostly worried about one thing - another flood coming through.

G TURNER: My husband literally⁶ retired⁷ on Sunday, and we have X amount of dollars in our retirement⁸ fund to last us the rest of our lives. We can't take a significant part of that out to invest in our house without some assurance that this is not going to happen again.

MITCHELL: Like many survivors⁹ of extreme weather disasters, Gretchen is exhausted¹⁰. There have been several major floods in Waverly, but the others weren't destructive enough to make people reconsider if they should stay in town.

Global warming is leading to heavier rainfalls. In August, more than 20 inches of rain fell in Waverly in 24 hours. It overflowed¹¹ the local creek¹², wiping out entire apartment buildings and businesses. Blocks of people were displaced from their homes.

G TURNER: We're so fortunate. And, you know, there's a lot of trauma¹³ out there, and I just need to count my blessings¹⁴.

MITCHELL: Five months later, several flood-damaged cars and homes look untouched, and, in some areas, piles of debris¹⁵ have become a normal part of the scenery. Some people have left the town with no plans to come back.

The fear that there could be another deadly flood a few years from now and more extreme weather deaths has kept Gretchen on the fence about rebuilding her century-old home. Doing that, only to have the house severely¹⁶ damaged by future flooding, is a risky¹⁷ investment. For now, she's pursuing a less high-stakes option. That is turning her flood-damaged garage into an apartment. It'll give her family a bit of stability while allowing time for them to think about the future. The garage is big enough for a few bedrooms, kitchen and a decent-sized tub. Gretchen has been getting help from volunteers to fix up the place.

G TURNER: You always have to keep thinking about the process - what has to happen before this happens, you know? But I'm just so ready to be here.

MITCHELL: So far, the Turner family has already spent thousands making their new garage home a reality while putting off the harder and more costly¹⁸ decisions about rebuilding their house.

G TURNER: If we could get some answers, it would give people more confidence to come back.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Yeah.

MITCHELL: She says while nothing is guaranteed, she wants to know that officials at all levels are at least doing something to address flooding.

G TURNER: You know, I'm still reaching out to elected officials and FEMA and TEMA and the Army Corps¹⁹, trying to - you know, I know they're not going to tell me anything, but I'm still going to bug²⁰ them.

MITCHELL: State and local leaders have expressed concern about future flooding, but they haven't given any guarantees that it won't happen again. And so far, Gretchen hasn't heard anything back about concrete flood mitigation plans. She says she doubts she actually will, although she does plan to continue pressing the issue.

Gretchen, her husband, Danny, and daughter, Zoe, have been staying with a friend a few miles from home for the past four months, but the space doesn't have the things the family is used to living with. There's no TV. Before the flood, Zoe thought she'd finally have a normal year in high school after dealing²¹ with COVID. Moving into a family friend's home has been all but that.

ZOE TURNER: Well, we brought our cats, and that helped me a lot because just having, like, your, I guess, feline²² friends around made you feel like you had to take care of them. Something about that made it easier to adjust.

MITCHELL: Zoe is a senior with a perfect GPA. After school, she's usually busy with color guard. Then, when she gets home, she's thinking about the rebuild.

Z TURNER: I guess it's difficult because I can kind of be involved. But in the end, I don't make the final call on anything. So I kind of just have to go with the flow, and that's a little bit difficult sometimes.

MITCHELL: That feeling is also shared by Zoe's older brother, Jackson. He was far away at college when the flood hit but still feels the impact of the destruction. He spoke²³ about it with Gretchen during a holiday dinner.

JACKSON TURNER: I guess I feel a little guilty. I'm never really here. And so I felt like - well, the first thing that I wanted to do was come out and help.

G TURNER: And you did.

J TURNER: Well, not immediately.

MITCHELL: Jackson says although he has his own life outside of Waverly and can mentally check out, he knows it'll be harder to get back to normal for his family.

J TURNER: The flood is still around. It's going to be around for a long time.

G TURNER: Yep.

MITCHELL: It's unrealistic that the town will ever return to what it used to be. So the Turner family is focused on getting through the winter and spring, around the time Zoe graduates from high school.

G TURNER: And so if we can hold off on the sheetrock and the mudding and all that for the house and let the volunteers do that, maybe we'll have some beginnings of some answers.

MITCHELL: She says until those answers come, it'll be tough for the family to settle on a permanent decision to rebuild their home because of the fear that Waverly will flood again. But more immediately, the Turners are planning to move into their converted garage this week. It'll be one milestone²⁴, but they have more challenges to come.

For NPR News, I'm Damon Mitchell in Nashville.

(SOUNDBITE OF SEB WILDBLOOD'S "OF TRANSITION")

1 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。

2 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。

3 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。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 gutted   

adj.容易消化的v.毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的过去式和过去分词 )；取出…的内脏

参考例句：

• Disappointed? I was gutted! 失望？我是伤心透了！
• The invaders gutted the historic building. 侵略者们将那幢历史上有名的建筑洗劫一空。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

9 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

10 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

11 overflowed   

溢出的

参考例句：

• Plates overflowed with party food. 聚会上的食物碟满盘盈。
• A great throng packed out the theater and overflowed into the corridors. 一大群人坐满剧院并且还有人涌到了走廊上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

13 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

14 blessings   

n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福

参考例句：

• Afflictions are sometimes blessings in disguise. 塞翁失马，焉知非福。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We don't rely on blessings from Heaven. 我们不靠老天保佑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

16 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

17 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

18 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

19 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

20 bug   

n.虫子；故障；窃听器；vt.纠缠；装窃听器

参考例句：

• There is a bug in the system.系统出了故障。
• The bird caught a bug on the fly.那鸟在飞行中捉住了一只昆虫。

21 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

22 feline   

adj.猫科的

参考例句：

• As a result,humans have learned to respect feline independence.结果是人们已经学会尊重猫的独立性。
• The awakening was almost feline in its stealthiness.这种醒觉，简直和猫的脚步一样地轻悄。

23 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。

24 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。