2006年VOA标准英语-Nigerian Officials Investigate Military Plane C

By Gilbert da Costa
Abuja
18 September 2006 
 

Investigations² have been launched into Sunday's military plane crash in central Nigeria. At least 12 out of the 17 on board are feared dead.

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The wreckage³ of the Nigerian air force Dornier 228 aircraft was located late Sunday in Benue state, in central Nigeria.

Defense⁴ ministry⁵ officials confirmed Monday that an investigation¹ into the cause of the crash has started.

The aircraft had 17 people on board, mostly senior army officers who were going to attend a series of meetings organized by the Nigerian army.

The plane left Abuja Sunday morning southward bound for Obudu Cattle Ranch⁶, a mountainous holiday resort near Nigeria's southeastern border with Cameroon. It crashed in Benue, less than 20 minutes before its scheduled landing.

Initial reports had suggested that there were some survivors⁷. But defense spokesman Felix Chukwuma says the number of casualties was not yet clear.

"There is a crash, an air force Dornier 228, en route from Abuja to Obudu, senior officers of the Nigerian army on their way to a retreat in Obudu. We want to confirm the number of casualties we have there and, in due course of time, I will release the names," he said.

Top Nigerian military commanders have paid tribute to the officers, describing them as some of the best in the army.

President Olusegun Obasanjo who was due to address the annual meeting of the International Monetary⁸ Fund and World Bank on Monday, has reportedly cut short his visit to Singapore and is returning to Nigeria.

Two air disasters in Nigeria last year killed more than 200 people, prompting questions about the safety of Nigerian aircraft.

1 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

2 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

3 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 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。

6 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

7 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

8 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。