美国国家公共电台 NPR--A man saves a stranger's life during a historic flash flood

A man saves a stranger's life during a historic flash flood

Transcript¹

In this week's StoryCorps, Zack Stephney talks to Melissa Brooks² — he rescued her from a flash flood in Georgia in 2009.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's Friday - don't really need to say any more than that. No, we should go on. It's time for StoryCorps, which we hear on Fridays. Today, we remember a flash flood that put parts of Douglasville, Ga., underwater in 2009. Zack Stephney was working at a trucking company overlooking the rising waters, and he came to StoryCorps with his friend Melissa Brooks to reflect.

ZACK STEPHNEY: We were seeing refrigerators go by, sofas float by. And when I first saw the car, I initially³ kind of laughed about it for a minute because, you know, we were like, oh, wow, somebody's car got washed from their driveway, and they don't even know it, until one of the guys said, hey, somebody's in that car. And it was like my I zoomed⁴ in to you, and I saw the fear in your eyes.

MELISSA BROOKS: Yeah. You know, I was going to meet my boss, and I was in a hurry. I didn't realize what the situation was. I was just driving along until I looked over to the side of me and I saw the river. Then I knew I was in trouble.

STEPHNEY: And I knew I had a matter of seconds to try to rescue you. So I thought about it then. If I can find that spool⁵ of rope, there would be enough for me to tie myself to it and then just swim out to you and have the guys pull me back. I was strapping⁶ myself up, and by that time, the car had sunk. At that point, I thought about my dad. He was a shop foreman right beside Chattahoochee River. One time, he kept hearing somebody yelling help. And as he went to go get this person, the guy was panicking. He was grabbing onto my dad, onto his shoulders and hand, preventing him to swim. And they both ended up going down. Both end up drowning in the river. I was 8 years old. So I was just saying to myself, I'm going to go get this lady. I'm going to make sure I got this water today because my dad left out here the same way. And I have three kids. I wasn't going to let that happen. So I just really stayed focused. Somebody hollered and say, she's out of the car, and she was hanging onto a tree.

BROOKS: Yeah, I was holding on to this flimsy little tree.

STEPHNEY: Yes.

BROOKS: And the branches were breaking off. I knew that if this tree broke, that I was gone.

STEPHNEY: I was terrified to see you just drown. So what I end up doing is swimming right into the current and just pulling my way up to you.

BROOKS: I remember your voice. It was crisp and clear, just like you were standing⁷ beside of me. You kept telling me they were going to get me, that it was going to be OK. Hold on. Hold on. And you saved my life.

STEPHNEY: The next day, I looked out the window. I could see the bird go by. And I'm just glad, you know, it turned out like this. I'm just glad for both of us to live another day - both of us. Yes.

BROOKS: Yeah.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

INSKEEP: Zack Stephney and Melissa Brooks in Atlanta. Their StoryCorps interview is archived at the Library of Congress.

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 brooks   

n.小溪( brook的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks gave the business when Haas caught him with his watch. 哈斯抓到偷他的手表的布鲁克斯时，狠狠地揍了他一顿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ade and Brooks exchanged blows yesterday and they were severely punished today. 艾德和布鲁克斯昨天打起来了，今天他们受到严厉的惩罚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

4 zoomed   

v.（飞机、汽车等）急速移动( zoom的过去式 )；（价格、费用等）急升，猛涨

参考例句：

• Traffic zoomed past us. 车辆从我们身边疾驰而过。
• Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停，喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 spool   

n.（缠录音带等的）卷盘（轴）；v.把…绕在卷轴上

参考例句：

• Can you wind this film back on to its spool?你能把这胶卷卷回到卷轴上去吗？
• Thomas squatted on the forward deck,whistling tunelessly,polishing the broze spool of the anchor winch.托马斯蹲在前甲板上擦起锚绞车的黄铜轴，边擦边胡乱吹着口哨。

6 strapping   

adj. 魁伟的, 身材高大健壮的 n. 皮绳或皮带的材料, 裹伤胶带, 皮鞭 动词strap的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• He's a strapping lad—already bigger than his father. 他是一个魁梧的小伙子——已经比他父亲高了。
• He was a tall strapping boy. 他是一个高大健壮的小伙子。

7 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。