VOA慢速英语--巴哈马官员：岛屿仍开放旅游

Bahamian Officials: Islands Still Open for Tourism

Before Hurricane Dorian hit the island group, the Bahamas was expecting one of its best years for tourism. Now, the future for that industry is unclear.

Some of the best-known resorts in the country, like Atlantis or Paradise Island, were not affected¹ by the powerful ocean storm that destroyed other areas. Nassau, the largest city on the 700-island nation, had little damage.

But Grand Bahama Island and the Abaco islands are 100 miles away. There, many small hotels and holiday rental² properties were damaged or destroyed. That means Bahamian officials have two problems. They must keep attracting tourists, but also recognize the deep suffering of those affected by the storm.

“All of the donations are welcome, but they can also…assist us by still visiting the islands of the Bahamas in the unaffected areas. They are open for business,” said Ellison Thompson. He is the deputy director general of the Bahamas Ministry³ of Tourism and Aviation.

The Bahamas Investment Authority says the islands depend on the tourism industry. It supplies half the islands’ yearly gross domestic product of $5.7 billion.

The Ministry of Tourism confirmed last week that all hotels on Abaco and Grand Bahama are closed. Together, the islands have about 3,000 hotel rooms, or 19 percent of the 16,000 rooms in the Bahamas, said Frank Comito. He is the chief of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association. The islands also have hundreds of vacation homes. Airbnb lists more than 600 rentals⁴ for the two islands.

The government says Grand Bahama received 670,000 visitors in 2018, mostly from cruise ships. More than 100,000 visitors arrived by airplane last year into Marsh⁶ Harbour, the largest town in the Abaco islands.

Comito has property on the beach in the Abaco islands, but does not know if it was damaged. Some hotels are providing information on Facebook. For example, the owners of Pelican⁷ Beach Villas⁸ said their oceanfront houses were completely destroyed. They were evacuated⁹ to Nassau by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Firefly Resort Abaco tweeted photos of fallen trees and a collapsed¹⁰ building.

“Hurricane Dorian destroyed our paradise. We will rebuild,” the resort said in its Twitter post.

There also is some industry in the area. Grand Bahama is home to the Freeport Container Port, a port for container ships that cross the ocean. Hong Kong-based Hutchinson Ports owns the business. It said its emergency team was helping¹¹ with rescue efforts and trying to re-establish power at the port. Spokesman Anthony Tam said the company’s nearby cruise station had little damage and was expecting ships carrying aid for hurricane victims soon.

Those businesses could help speed the recovery. Carnival¹² Cruise Lines said it is committed to a port development project in Grand Bahama announced earlier this year. It will be completed in 2021 and will be the largest port the company owns. It is expected to create at least 1,000 jobs.

Tourism to unaffected islands could also bring in much-needed money and provide jobs for hotel workers. In early 2019, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation reported record levels of tourism partly because of the newly completed Baha Mar⁵ resort.

“One of the best ways that people around the world can show their support and solidarity¹³...is to visit our other islands by air or by cruise ship,” Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said Friday.

I'm Susan Shand.

Words in This Story

tourism – n. the activity of traveling to a place for pleasure

rental –adj. related to rent, paying an amount to use something such as a room or a house, for a short period of time

resort – n. a place where people go for vacations

gross domestic product – n. the total value of the goods and services produced by the people of a nation during a yea

cruise – n. to travel on a boat or ship to a number of places as a vacation

paradise – n. a very beautiful, pleasant, or peaceful place that seems to be perfect

1 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

2 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

3 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

4 rentals   

n.租费，租金额( rental的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In some large hotels, the income derived from this source actually exceeds income from room rentals. 有些大旅馆中，这方面的盈利实际上要超过出租客房的盈利。 来自辞典例句
• Clerk: Well, Canadian Gifts is on the lower level. It's across from Prime Time Video Rentals. 噢，礼品店在楼下，在黄金时刻录像出租屋的对面。 来自口语例句

5 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

6 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

7 pelican   

n.鹈鹕，伽蓝鸟

参考例句：

• The pelican has a very useful beak.鹈鹕有一张非常有用的嘴。
• This pelican is expected to fully recover.这只鹈鹕不久就能痊愈。

8 villas   

别墅，公馆( villa的名词复数 )； （城郊）住宅

参考例句：

• Magnificent villas are found throughout Italy. 在意大利到处可看到豪华的别墅。
• Rich men came down from wealthy Rome to build sea-side villas. 有钱人从富有的罗马来到这儿建造海滨别墅。

9 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

10 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

11 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。

12 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

13 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。