VOA慢速英语--德国男子利用牛仔裤充气,使其能在海里生存三小时

German Man Inflates¹ Jeans to Survive Three Hours in Sea

This is What’s Trending Today.

Arne Murke is crediting his blue jeans with saving his life.

The 30-year-old German man was thrown off a sailboat in rough seas near New Zealand.

Murke says he turned his jeans into a life jacket that kept him afloat for over three hours. He was later rescued by a coast guard crew.

The German was sailing with his brother in Tolaga Bay, on the east coast of New Zealand's north island. They reportedly had agreed to take the boat, the yacht Wahoo, to Brazil.

The trip was uneventful until the yacht’s boom turned suddenly, hitting Arne Murke and knocking him in the water.

"Luckily, I knew the trick with the jeans," he told The New Zealand Herald² newspaper. "Without the jeans I wouldn't be here today. They were really the thing that saved me."

Murke added that he took the yacht delivery job in order to raise money for his 10-month old daughter. She lives with his girlfriend in the Philippines.

"While I was in the water I was just thinking, I can't leave my daughter behind without a father. That was the biggest motivation," he said.

Murke said he tied knots at the end of the legs and pulled them over water to get air inside. He then forced his jeans under water to trap air and create a life jacket.

A rescue helicopter found the German about 3 and a half hours after he fell from the boat. Images of Murke floating in the water while being rescued have been appearing on the internet.

Chris Henshaw is the Senior Search and Rescue Coordinator³ for Rescue Coordination⁴ Center New Zealand. He said in a statement that the yacht had communications devices, including radio and emergency beacons⁵, which helped alert rescuers. Without these devices, Henshaw noted⁶, "it may have turned out differently."

And that’s What’s Trending Today. I'm John Russell.

Words in This Story

yachtsman – n. a man who owns or sails a yacht

jeans – n. pants made of a strong cloth (called denim)

yacht – n. a large boat that is used for racing⁷ or pleasure

knot – n. a part that forms when you tie a piece of rope, string, fabric⁸, etc., to itself or to something else

boom – n. a long pole connected to the bottom of a sailboat’s sail

life jacket – n. an inflatable device for keeping a person afloat in water

1 inflates   

v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的第三人称单数 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨

参考例句：

• Mass advertising often inflates prices rather than reducing them. 大宗广告常常是抬高物价而不是降低。 来自辞典例句
• The device periodically inflates the cuff and takes a blood pressure reading. 定期气囊打气及进行血压读数。 来自互联网

2 herald   

vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎

参考例句：

• In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
• Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。

3 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

4 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

5 beacons   

灯塔( beacon的名词复数 )； 烽火； 指路明灯； 无线电台或发射台

参考例句：

• A chain of beacons was lit across the region. 整个地区点起了一系列灯塔。
• Lighthouse and beacons flash at night. 晚上灯塔与信号台闪着光。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

8 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。