美国国家公共电台 NPR--At a community meeting, residents voice concerns about Ohio train derailment

At a community meeting, residents voice concerns about Ohio train derailment

Transcript¹

Officials in Ohio say cleanup of the site of a derailed freight train that carried toxic² chemicals is moving quickly, but some residents worry about the health impacts of the chemicals.

ASMA KHALID, HOST:

Some residents of East Palestine, Ohio, contend that a chemical spill is making them sick.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Residents are back at home two weeks after that highly publicized train wreck³. The Norfolk Southern train carried hazardous⁴ materials. The railroad says it's going to clean up that spill, and federal authorities told people who evacuated⁵ that it was safe to return. But a different view emerged at a community meeting last night.

KHALID: Ideastream Public Media's Abigail Bottar attended that meeting. And Abigail, I just want to begin by asking you to describe what the atmosphere was like.

ABIGAIL BOTTAR, BYLINE⁶: It was pretty contentious⁷. A lot of people showed up. It was a couple hundred residents from the surrounding areas. They were angry and frustrated⁸ with the lack of information they were getting. And the railroad wasn't in attendance at this meeting last night. Candice Desanzo evacuated the area with her children shortly after the derailment, but returned when the evacuation order was lifted. Now she's second-guessing that decision.

CANDICE DESANZO: We all have red rashes, loose stool, congestion⁹, eyes burning. Everything smells. I have been having terrible headaches.

BOTTAR: And she wasn't the only one. Many residents have been complaining about fumes¹⁰ around town and how they're impacting their health, particularly near the site of the derailment and a local creek¹¹.

KHALID: Wow. So how is the EPA responding to these complaints? What are they saying?

BOTTAR: The EPA, both the U.S. and the Ohio agencies, both reiterated¹² that the air and the water are both safe in East Palestine and that they're going to continue to monitor it. An official with the EPA at the meeting last night said that they are also smelling the fumes residents were complaining about. They said they know the chemical that's causing it, but say they're not detecting levels high enough that could actually impact human health.

KHALID: Got it. And then how are people - how are residents there responding to this information?

BOTTAR: I would say they're just not satisfied with that answer. It's not matching up with what their lived experience is and knowing people who are actually experiencing these symptoms themselves. And they don't know what the actual impact of these chemicals are going to have on their health, really, now, and what's going to happen in the future. And a lot of residents are also saying that they feel like they're not getting enough attention from government agencies and officials. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has been to East Palestine a few times in the past couple weeks, but residents like Kirsten Miller¹³ say that's not enough.

KRISTIN MILLER: Would DeWine want his family to go live on the tracks where my family lives? Would he feel safe? No. But instead of entering us into a state of emergency and calling in FEMA, this is what they want to do. They want to brush us under the rug like nothing ever happened. And that's what's being done.

BOTTAR: And while the cause of the accident is still under investigation¹⁴, residents say there needs to be more accountability from Norfolk Southern.

KHALID: Norfolk Southern - the railroad operator there - you mentioned earlier that officials from Norfolk Southern were not in attendance at the meeting. How are they responding to what residents are saying?

BOTTAR: They say they will continue to respond to community concerns despite the fact that they weren't at the meeting. A few hours before the meeting, Norfolk Southern released a statement saying representatives would not be in attendance, despite that being the plan. They said that this was, quote, "due to a growing physical threat to employees and members of the community." I have not been able to substantiate¹⁵ any of those claims with community members or the mayor, but Norfolk Southern has been reimbursing¹⁶ people for costs incurred¹⁷ due to the evacuation. They also recently set up a charitable fund to support the community. But residents were really angry that they weren't at the meeting last night and that they couldn't bring their concerns directly to Norfolk Southern. Already, several people and business owners have filed class-action lawsuits¹⁸ against Norfolk Southern.

KHALID: That's Ideastream Public Media's Abigail Bottar, who's been covering the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Thanks very much for your reporting, Abigail.

BOTTAR: You're welcome.

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 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

3 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

4 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

5 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

6 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。

7 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

8 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。

10 fumes   

n.(强烈而刺激的)气味，气体

参考例句：

• The health of our children is being endangered by exhaust fumes. 我们孩子们的健康正受到排放出的废气的损害。
• Exhaust fumes are bad for your health. 废气对健康有害。

11 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。

12 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

13 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

14 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。

15 substantiate   

v.证实；证明...有根据

参考例句：

• There is little scientific evidence to substantiate the claims.这些主张几乎找不到科学依据来证实。
• These theories are used to substantiate the relationship between the phenomenons of the universe.这些学说是用来证实宇宙现象之间的关系。

16 reimbursing   

v.偿还，付还( reimburse的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• All banking charges outside Korea and reimbursing are for account of beneficiary. 所有韩国以外的用度及偿付行用度由受益人承担。 来自互联网
• A reimbursing bank's charges are for the account of the issuing bank. 然而，如果费用系由受益人承担，则开证行有责任在信用证和偿付授权书中予以注明。 来自互联网

17 incurred   

[医]招致的，遭受的； incur的过去式

参考例句：

• She had incurred the wrath of her father by marrying without his consent 她未经父亲同意就结婚，使父亲震怒。
• We will reimburse any expenses incurred. 我们将付还所有相关费用。

18 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句