VOA慢速英语2016 世卫称溺水是儿童死亡的主要原因之一（在线收听）

WHO: Drowning Among Top Causes of Death in Children 世卫称溺水是儿童死亡的主要原因之一

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

这里是VOA慢速英语健康生活频道。

The World Health Organization (WHO) says drowning is among the top five causes of death for children under the age of 15.

世界卫生组织称溺水是15岁以下儿童五大死因之一。

The United Nations agency also found that boys and girls living near open water sources, such as ponds and irrigation ditches, are especially at risk.

该机构还发现住所周围有池塘或灌溉水渠等开放水域的儿童尤其危险。

How serious is the problem in Asia?

亚洲的溺水问题有多严重？

Other studies have shown that, on average, drownings kill at least one child every 15 minutes somewhere in Asia.

研究发现：亚洲地区平均每十五分钟就有一个孩子因溺水死亡。

Children in Asia are especially at risk in extreme heat during the summer and during the monsoon or rainy season.

每逢夏季及雨季，炎热的环境导致亚洲儿童溺水的危险倍增。

Monsoon rains have already begun in western Asia. Heavy rains in Pakistan recently were blamed for killing around 100 people, including women and children.

西亚地区已迎来季风雨。近日，巴基斯坦的强降雨已造成100多人死亡，其中多数为妇女和儿童。

The Asia-based group Alliance for Safe Children says drowning rates in developing countries are 10 to 20 times higher than those in developed countries.

总部位于亚洲的儿童安全联盟表示，发展中国家儿童溺水率是发达国家的10-20倍。

The Alliance’s survey found that Bangladesh has the highest rates of child drownings: almost 17,000 a year.

联盟公布的报告显示，孟加拉国是儿童溺水率最高的国家，每年有17000名儿童溺水死亡。

Vietnam followed Bangladesh with more than 11,500 child drownings a year. In Thailand, about 2,600 children drown each year.

其次是越南，每年超11500名儿童溺水死亡。而泰国每年儿童溺亡数量为2600。

Thailand's Disease Control Department recently reported that more than 10,000 children drowned from 2006 to 2015. That number represents a rate of 10 drownings a day.

泰国疾病控制部门最近报道称，2006年到2015年共有1万名儿童溺水死亡。该数据意味着平均每天有10名儿童因溺水死亡。

In China, information for most provinces is not available. But in Jiangxi province alone, the Alliance discovered evidence of more than 4,600 child drownings a year. That is also a rate of 10 deaths every day.

而在中国，多数省份的相关信息并不齐全。江西省每年有4600名儿童溺亡。相当于每天有10名儿童溺水而死。

What can help?

如何解决这一问题？

Bill Kirby of Australia won a gold medal as a swimmer in the 2000 Olympics. He now leads swimming classes and training programs in Asia, mainly in Indonesia and Malaysia.

澳大利亚的Bill Kirby在2000年奥运会上夺得游泳比赛金牌。他现在在印尼、马来西亚开设了游泳班及训练项目。

Kirby told VOA that governments and swimming organizations can work together to campaign for improved water safety.

Kirby在接受VOA采访时表示，政府和游泳机构可以携手改善水域方面的安全。

"One of the first steps is actually to create a national body that looks after water safety, whether it be like [Australia's] Royal Life Saving or a Swim Australia or whatever it is -- that can actually get a lot of stakeholders together, get some government funding and promote water safety.”

Kirby adds that swimming associations in Asia need to be better organized.

他还补充说，亚洲游泳机构的组织协调性尚待提高。

"I think, one of the things with the  Asian countries, they’re still yet to be as organized as the swimming associations or swimming bodies are like in the Western world, which probably had more time to be organized and have had government funding and they see the importance of it.”

He adds that this is especially important in areas that experience what he calls “massive” flooding. He uses the word downpour to mean heavy rainfall.

"Massive flooding whether it's in Pakistan at the moment or I know in [the Indonesian capital of] Jakarta every year or every two years, they have such big floodings where all the waste goes into the waterways and they have a massive downpour and it floods, creating more opportunity for kids to drown.”

Officials in Thailand have called on parents to teach children how to swim. They are also asking parents to keep a close watch on their children, especially during what they call the "risky" period: between the middle of the day and sunset.

泰国政府呼吁父母教孩子学游泳。同时要求父母随时注意孩子动向，尤其是“危险”高发时段：中午到傍晚。

The World Health Organization and others are urging countries to push for water safety and survival skills.

世界卫生组织及其他公益组织呼吁各国加强水域安全防护，提高生存技能。

The WHO says measures should include

世界卫生组织提出以下几点：

making barriers to control access to water;

在水域周围设置护栏；

providing safe childcare for very young children away from water sources;

安全看护低龄儿童，避免其靠近水源；

teaching water safety and rescue skills.

教授水域安全知识和急救相关技能。

The WHO adds that governments need to guarantee safe boating and rules for passenger boat services. It warns that governments also need to improve flood risk management.

世界卫生组织称，政府需保证船只航行安全，完善船只行驶的相关规定。同时，政府需提升管理洪水风险的能力。

Words in This Story

stakeholder – n. one who is involved in or affected by a course of action

association – n. an organized group of people who have the same interest, job, etc.

massive – adj. large in amount or degree : very severe

downpour – n. a sudden heavy rain