2007年VOA标准英语-Kenya Airways Jet Crashes in Cameroon

By Katy Migiro
Nairobi
05 May 2007

Authorities in Cameroon have begun a search for a Kenya Airways¹ jetliner that crashed with 114 people aboard in the southern part of the country. The plane took off from Cameroon's commercial center of Douala early Saturday and was bound for the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. There is no word yet on casualties. Katy Migiro has more for VOA from Nairobi, where Kenya Airways has set up a crisis center.

 

Kenya Airways CEO Titus Naikuni gives a press conference in Nairobi, 05 May 2007

Kenya Airways chief executive Titus Naikuni says the aircraft lost touch with the control tower in Doula immediately after take off.

Naikuni says Cameroonian authorities picked up an automatic distress² signal from the plane and they have sent helicopters to the area the signal came from.

"The latest information that we have is that a distress signal was picked up on the west coast of Africa and a search and rescue mission, initiated³ by the Cameroonian authorities, was initiated at 1105 this morning, that is Nairobi time," he said. "So far no report has yet been received from this mission."

The distress signal came from an area about 35 nautical⁴ miles south west of Doula.

Naikuni says there were 105 passengers and nine crew members on board the plane. He says most of the passengers were African, but there were also Europeans, Asians and one American on the flight.

Government spokesperson Alfred Mutua described the situation as tragic⁵.

"The government has co-ordinated a team of officials and experts led by the Honorable Minister of Transport Chirau Ali Mwakwere to travel to Cameroon and link up with authorities there so as to establish what is happening and also lead the operation," he said. "The government will do everything to unearth⁶ the cause of this accident in order to prevent it from occurring again."

In 2000, 169 people died when a Kenya Airways Airbus crashed into the sea shortly after take off from Abidjan, in Ivory Coast.

The missing plane was only six months old.

1 AIRWAYS   

航空公司

参考例句：

• The giant jets that increasingly dominate the world's airways. 越来越称雄于世界航线的巨型喷气机。
• At one point the company bought from Nippon Airways a 727 jet. 有一次公司从日本航空公司买了一架727型喷气机。

2 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

3 initiated   

n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入

参考例句：

• He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
• The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。

4 nautical   

adj.海上的，航海的，船员的

参考例句：

• A nautical mile is 1,852 meters.一海里等于1852米。
• It is 206 nautical miles from our present location.距离我们现在的位置有206海里。

5 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

6 unearth   

v.发掘，掘出，从洞中赶出

参考例句：

• Most of the unearth relics remain intact.大多数出土文物仍保持完整无损。
• More human remains have been unearthed in the north.北部又挖掘出了更多的人体遗骸。