美国国家公共电台 NPR--How Puerto Rico is faring after Hurricane Fiona brought catastrophic floods

How Puerto Rico is faring after Hurricane Fiona brought catastrophic floods

Transcript¹

Hurricane Fiona has left Puerto Rico crippled by flooding and power failures. How are people there coping and how much better is the island's response compared to years past?

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

All across Puerto Rico, people are starting to assess just how much destruction Hurricane Fiona has caused.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Floodwaters are starting to recede² in some places, but other parts are still facing threats of flash floods, mudslides and collapsed³ bridges. Much of the island is also still without power, and a lot of people don't have drinking water. It could be days or longer before all that is restored.

FADEL: For more, we have NPR's Luis Trelles joining us from Puerto Rico's capital, San Juan. Hi, Luis.

LUIS TRELLES, BYLINE⁴: Hi, Leila.

FADEL: So what is the power and water situation right now, not just in San Juan, where you are, but in smaller towns that are harder to access?

TRELLES: Yeah, so the power blackouts began Sunday, right before the storm arrived, and by Monday night, power had been restored to more than 100,000 customers - this on an island of 3.2 million people. So as you can see, many people remain in the dark today. Puerto Rico's governor, Pedro Pierluisi, is telling the public that it could take days to fully⁵ restore electricity across the island. He is calling the power outages and the massive flooding and landslides⁶ that have come in the wake of Hurricane Fiona - he's labeled them as catastrophic. And just as critical is the island's supply of clean water. With no electricity, there's no power to run filtration systems and no power to pump water into homes. And that means no clean water for drinking, bathing or flushing toilets. And by Monday afternoon, more than 800,000 customers, two-thirds of the total on the island, faced cuts and disruptions to their water service.

FADEL: Now, I can't help but mention, you know, it's been five years to the day since Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. Billions of dollars were allocated⁷ by Congress to harden the island against future storms, storms like Fiona. And yet here we are seeing the island without power, so much devastation⁸. Why?

TRELLES: I have to tell you, Leila, this is the story of a blackout, we're told. The electric grid⁹ is run by a private company called LUMA. And Puerto Ricans have been facing blackouts throughout the summer and even the summer of last year. So when the hurricane was announced and we knew that a direct hit was coming, the question was not would there be a blackout, but how long would it last? The funds that have been allocated to Puerto Rico have been slow to reach projects that need to be built. And the government has also - the local government of Puerto Rico has also been slow to deal with all the requisites¹⁰ put in by the federal government to access those funds.

FADEL: Right now, what's the weather like? I mean, is there still this deluge¹¹ of rainfall?

TRELLES: The heaviest rainfall fell on Sunday, but still yesterday, once the - Hurricane Fiona had moved on to the Dominican Republic, tropical storm winds and levels of rain could be felt throughout the island. This is very concerning, especially in smaller towns on the southeastern tip of the island and across central mountainous region in the island. And so rivers have been overflowing¹². And the National Guard has reportedly rescued more than 900 people from the floodwaters. Today, it does look a bit clearer, but thunder clouds are still overhead.

FADEL: That's NPR's Luis Trelles in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Thank you so much.

TRELLES: Thank you, Leila.

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 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。

3 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

4 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。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 landslides   

山崩( landslide的名词复数 )； （山坡、悬崖等的）崩塌； 滑坡； （竞选中）一方选票占压倒性多数

参考例句：

• Landslides have cut off many villages in remote areas. 滑坡使边远地区的许多村庄与外界隔绝。
• The storm caused landslides and flooding in Savona. 风暴致使萨沃纳发生塌方和洪灾。

7 allocated   

adj. 分配的 动词allocate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The Ford Foundation allocated millions of dollars for cancer research. 福特基金会拨款数百万美元用于癌症研究。
• More funds will now be allocated to charitable organizations. 现在会拨更多的资金给慈善组织。

8 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

10 requisites   

n.必要的事物( requisite的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It is obvious that there are two requisites. 显然有两个必要部分。 来自辞典例句
• Capacity of donor is one of the essential requisites of \"gift\". 赠与人的行为能力是\"赠与\"的一个重要前提。 来自口语例句

11 deluge   

n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥

参考例句：

• This little stream can become a deluge when it rains heavily.雨大的时候，这条小溪能变作洪流。
• I got caught in the deluge on the way home.我在回家的路上遇到倾盆大雨。

12 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。