英语听力：澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2013-10-14

 Leading the news. Cooler weather has been helping¹ firefighters in New South Wales who are still battling around 60 bushfires burning across the state. Fire crews spent the night strengthening containment² lines around fires at Port Stephens north of Newcastle. Another house has caught fire in the soiled ash blaze this morning. Bushfires have already destroyed 6 homes and damaged or destroyed around 70 cars.

 

 

Federal Labour MPs meet in Canberra today to choose a new deputy leader and frontbench team. Bill Shorten narrowly beat his rival Anthony Albanese for the top job. Mr.Shorten’s picked for deputy, Tanya Plibersek, is expected to be endorsed³ by the caucus⁴.

 

 

British police are launching a public appeal in their hunt for Madeleine Mccann. The British girl went missing in 2007 while on holidays with her parents in Portugal. A prime time TV programme will present a new timeline and vision of events surrounding Made’s disappearance⁵. 

 

 

Scores of pilgrims have died in a stampede at a Hindu Festival in central India. Panic broke out when crowds were trying to cross a bridge near a temple in the state of Madhya Pradesh. More than 90 people, many of them were women and children were crushed to death, or drowned after jumping from that bridge. 

 

 

And several people will face court today after a series of Bikie gang raids at the weekend. Fifty-seven people were arrested in the raids across the country. They are facing charges including robbery and assault as well as drugs and firearms offences. 

1 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

2 containment   

n.阻止，遏制；容量

参考例句：

• Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
• Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说，心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。

3 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

5 disappearance   

n.消失，消散，失踪

参考例句：

• He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
• Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。