PBS高端访谈:天堂小镇大火一周年祭

Megan Thompson: One year ago, thousands of northern Californians were fleeing the Camp Fire, a huge wildfire that killed 85 people, destroyed 95 percent of the town of Paradise and burned more than 150,000 acres. Yesterday, residents and officials marked the anniversary with a small ceremony and 85 seconds of silence, one for each victim of the fire in a town that is still struggling to recover. San Francisco Chronicle reporter Lizzie Johnson joins us now from Paradise, California. So as I understand that you've been actually living part time in Paradise for the last year, doing your reporting. Tell us, what's it like there now, one year later?

Lizzie Johnson: The big emphasis is on rebuilding. So when you drive around town, it's not just burnt down lots and homes and buildings. It's a blank slate¹. It's driving past you know what looks like entire fields of empty dirt.

Megan Thompson: Do we have a sense of how many people are planning to return?

Lizzie Johnson: So there's no exact data. But the town manager did say that the town of Paradise has received about 500 building permits since last year. So that's the best estimate they have been since last November, 15 houses have been rebuilt. And keep in mind that 14,000.

Megan Thompson: What are the people who are staying or returning, what are they saying? I mean, how are they feeling?

Lizzie Johnson: It's hard. The ceremony yesterday, officials were talking about how the amount of debris² in Paradise after the Camp Fire was two and a half times what came down in New York City after the 9/11 attacks. So the fact that they've gotten rid of most of the debris and trouble place to rebuild. So I think a lot of people that I've talked with, they're frustrated³ by how long it takes. They just want to get back to their old life.

Megan Thompson: I wanted to ask about whether they're rebuilding in a different way in order to ensure that buildings and houses are built maybe in a more safe place?

Lizzie Johnson: So when it comes to building, the town has made some pretty major changes. Things like having the siting raised off the ground so that if the fire creeps up, it doesn't automatically back up the wall. Mobile homes have to have been built within the last 10 years. At the time of the Camp Fire, most homes were about 30 years old. So very flammable. One house caught on fire and that caused the entire block to catch on fire.

Megan Thompson: You talked about frustration⁴ over how long things were taking. I mean, what kind of help and aid is the town getting from the state and federal government?

Lizzie Johnson: There have been a lot of grants that have come in from FEMA, from the state, from the North Valley Community Foundation. Grants to help people rebuild, to get loans, to rebuild. But in the wake of a disaster like this, the need is just massive.

Megan Thompson: All right, Lizzie Johnson of the San Francisco Chronicle, thank you so much.

Lizzie Johnson: Thank you.

梅根·汤普森：1年前，数千名加州北部的居民逃离了营火。这场大火导致85人死亡，摧毁了天堂小镇95%的区域，波及了15万多公顷的土地。昨天，这里的居民和官员为大火的纪念日举行了小型仪式，所有人静默了85秒。每一秒静默代表着对这里每位遇难者的悼念。直到现在，这座小镇依然还在重建中。旧金山记者利兹·约翰逊今天从加州的天堂小镇与我们连线。据我了解，去年，你有在天堂小镇生活过一段时间，也对这里进行过报道。请告诉我们那里现在是什么样子，在大火发生一年后的现在。

利兹·约翰逊：现在，天堂小镇的重中之重是重建工作。如果驱车在城里走动，就会发现这里的楼房不只是烧得满目疮痍，这里的一切都需要重头再来，到处都是乌黑的烧灼痕迹。

梅根·汤普森：知道有多少人要回来吗？

利兹·约翰逊：所以，目前是没有准确数据的。不过，该镇的管理人员确实说过，天堂小镇从去年以来已经收到了近500份建筑执照。这是自去年11月以来的最佳估测，已经重建了15座楼。但目标数可是1.4万。

梅根·汤普森：留下来的人以及回来这里的人都怎么看待这件事呢？他们的感受如何？

利兹·约翰逊：他们挺难受的。昨天的仪式上，一些官员说到了该镇的一片废墟。营火后残骸的数量是9/11纽约遇袭事件后的2.5倍。所以现在的现实情况是：他们要处理大量残骸，也有大量重建工作要做。所以我想到了很多跟我聊过的人，他们对于需要耗时这么久来进行重建感到很有挫败感。他们只是希望能回到之前的生活状态而已。

梅根·汤普森：我想问一下，他们重建的方式是否有做改动来确保房屋更安全呢？

利兹·约翰逊：关于重建工作，天堂小镇有一些巨大的改动。比如提高房屋的高度，这样一来，如果火势向上蔓延，也不会越过墙面。过去10年间，一定建造了许多拖车住房。营火发生的时候，大多数房屋大概只建造了30年左右。所以易燃性很高。只要一座房子着火，整个街区都会着火。

梅根·汤普森：你刚才提到修复所需的时间让当地市民感到很有挫败感。所以想想问，州政府和联邦政府对该镇提供了怎样的援助呢？

利兹·约翰逊：联邦应急管理局（FEMA）提供了很多补给，有来自州的补给，也有来自北谷社区基金会的补给。有补给金来帮助做重建工作、获取贷款。但经历了这样的浩劫之后，该镇的需求量很大。

梅根·汤普森：好的，感谢利兹·约翰逊从旧金山与我们联系。

利兹·约翰逊：谢谢。

1 slate   

n.板岩，石板，石片，石板色，候选人名单；adj.暗蓝灰色的，含板岩的；vt.用石板覆盖，痛打，提名，预订

参考例句：

• The nominating committee laid its slate before the board.提名委员会把候选人名单提交全体委员会讨论。
• What kind of job uses stained wood and slate? 什么工作会接触木头污浊和石板呢？

2 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

3 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》

4 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。