2006年VOA标准英语-Europe Sizzling From Summer Heat Wave

By Lisa Bryant
Paris
19 July 2006
 
Europe is baking under a heat wave that has sent temperatures soaring past 36 degrees Celsius¹ in some places.   The sizzling weather is blamed for the deaths of at least half a dozen people. But from a very hot Paris, Lisa Bryant reports European governments are taking measures to prevent a repeat of a killer² heat wave of three years ago.

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A woman cools down at a fountain in downtown Rome 
  
It's all over the news these days. Apart from the violence in the Middle East, the heat wave in Europe is dominating the airwaves and newspaper headlines around the region.

Temperatures in parts of France were expected to soar as high as 36 degrees celsius Wednesday.

Other parts of Europe are expected to be even hotter, hovering³ near 37 degrees in Italy, and 38 in Britain, which could be that country's hottest day in 100 years.  So far, the heat wave has killed at least six people around Europe, including three in France.

Weather forecasters are predicting no relief for Thursday.  Thermometers in Germany are expected to climb to 37 degrees. Meteorologists say July could be Germany's hottest month in history.

The heat is accompanied by unusually dry weather in many places. The blue skies and blazing sun may be perfect for beachgoers, but not for farmers.  Italy's main farmers union says the country is suffering one of its worst droughts of the last three decades.

And in France, the dry weather forced some local authorities to cancel Bastille holiday fireworks last week, for fear of fires.  Europeans are not used to such hot temperatures and many offices, public transportation systems and homes don't have air conditioning, or even fans.

The sizzling scenario⁴ seems eerily⁵ similar to the heat wave of 2003, when heat was linked to the deaths of roughly 30,000 people around Europe, half of them in France.  Things are different this summer.

French social workers and ordinary French are checking in on older people, to make sure they're o.k.. The government has established a weather warning system, and a help hot line for the elderly and other fragile people. Other European countries are taking similar preventative measures. Nobody wants a repeat of the killer heat wave of 2003.

1 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

2 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

3 hovering   

鸟( hover的现在分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• The helicopter was hovering about 100 metres above the pad. 直升机在离发射台一百米的上空盘旋。
• I'm hovering between the concert and the play tonight. 我犹豫不决今晚是听音乐会还是看戏。

4 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

5 eerily   

adv.引起神秘感或害怕地

参考例句：

• It was nearly mid-night and eerily dark all around her. 夜深了，到处是一片黑黝黝的怪影。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译
• The vast volcanic slope was eerily reminiscent of a lunar landscape. 开阔的火山坡让人心生怪异地联想起月球的地貌。 来自辞典例句