美国国家公共电台 NPR--Flood cleanup is slow going in Kentucky as rescue efforts are still underway

Flood cleanup is slow going in Kentucky as rescue efforts are still underway

Transcript¹

In eastern Kentucky, the search continues for people missing following severe flooding. The death toll² has risen to 28, and the governor says he expects it to keep climbing.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

The death toll from flash flooding in eastern Kentucky is now over two dozen.

ASMA KHALID, HOST:

And the governor expects that number to continue to grow significantly in the coming weeks. Cleanup is slow going and rescue efforts are still underway.

MART?NEZ: Stan Ingold of member station WEKU in Richmond, Ky., has been covering the flood. Stan, a lot more rain in the last few days. That, I'm sure, has complicated things there. What have officials been able to do?

STAN INGOLD, BYLINE³: Well, the terrain⁴ in this part of Appalachia is beautiful but unforgiving. It's a collection of mountains, hills, valleys, rivers and tributaries⁵. It's hard to get around on a good day. So when all this rain poured in, it flooded everything out. It washed out roads. It damaged bridges. There were rock and mud slides. And you can start to understand why it might take so long to find everyone who's missing. We spoke⁶ with resident P.J. Collett (ph), who had been moved to a local high school during the flooding.

PJ COLLETT: We're here because the place we were staying at, the water got up to our back door. And I reckon it's in the parking lot and it's in the building. We've lost everything.

INGOLD: Collett is one of hundreds of people in this area who've been displaced. Hundreds of homes and businesses were either washed away or left damaged by the surge of water. Willie Bush (ph) from Breathitt County has little left of his home.

WILLIE BUSH: Frame's still there and the roof. But everything else is gone. Three houses, five cars, right at my place, my daughter's place and my trailer, too. I had a trailer there, too. It's gone.

INGOLD: And these are some of the people lucky enough to make it.

MART?NEZ: Now, we said the death total is expected to keep climbing. What about the people missing?

INGOLD: Governor Andy Beshear said that, unfortunately, he expects more bodies to be found in the days and even weeks to come. He said finding lost Kentuckians is a priority.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ANDY BESHEAR: Make sure that we ultimately learn about everyone that's missing, check on every single one of them, hopefully, reunite them with their families. But if not, we're going to be there with them through the toughest of the tough.

INGOLD: Cellphone service has been down for much of the area since the floods came. And that's complicating⁷ the rescue efforts. It makes it hard to communicate. There's also a glimmer⁸ of hope, though. It's possible that some people who are counted as missing just haven't been able to make contact with loved ones or authorities just yet. And that actually happened recently during a round of tornadoes⁹ in Kentucky last December. So the governor is holding out hope for now.

MART?NEZ: And we mentioned that more rain is expected, Stan. How's it looking there?

INGOLD: Well, the rain has been off and on for a few days here. And sometimes it slows enough for the waters to recede¹⁰, giving rescuers the chance to get into areas where they - were previously¹¹ inaccessible¹². There's a new weather concern just around the corner, though. The National Weather Service says that the rain is expected to move out. But high temperatures and high humidity are expected for much of this week, with heat indexes expected to be in the upper 90s or even higher. And many people are still without power and water. So officials are working to set up cooling stations to help people escape the heat as they try to continue search-and-rescue efforts and try to rebuild their lives. It's not going to be easy. This part of Kentucky is very poor. But there's a strong sense of community and people who want to help each other. That being said, though, it's just not good here right now and probably won't be for days or weeks still, if not longer.

MART?NEZ: That's Stan Ingold of member station WEKU in Richmond, Ky. Stan, thank you.

INGOLD: 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 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

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 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

5 tributaries   

n. 支流

参考例句：

• In such areas small tributaries or gullies will not show. 在这些地区，小的支流和冲沟显示不出来。
• These tributaries are subsequent streams which erode strike valley. 这些支流系即为蚀出走向谷的次生河。

6 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。

7 complicating   

使复杂化( complicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• High spiking fever with chills is suggestive of a complicating pylephlebitis. 伴有寒战的高热，暗示合并门静脉炎。
• In America these actions become executive puberty rites, complicating relationships that are already complicated enough. 在美国，这些行动成了行政青春期的惯例，使本来已经够复杂的关系变得更复杂了。

8 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

9 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

10 recede   

vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进

参考例句：

• The colleges would recede in importance.大学的重要性会降低。
• He saw that the dirty water had begun to recede.他发现那污浊的水开始往下退了。

11 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

12 inaccessible   

adj.达不到的，难接近的

参考例句：

• This novel seems to me among the most inaccessible.这本书对我来说是最难懂的小说之一。
• The top of Mount Everest is the most inaccessible place in the world.珠穆朗玛峰是世界上最难到达的地方。