2007年VOA标准英语-Fires Rage in Greece For Fifth Day

By Nathan Morley
Nicosia
28 August 2007

Forest fires continue to rage in Greece's mountainous southern peninsula of Peloponnese. At least 63 people have died in the blazes, which are now in their fifth day.  Police have charged seven people with arson¹ and are offering a $1.4 million reward for information leading to more arrests.  Nathan Morley reports for VOA that Greek voters go to polls in September and the fires may play a big role.

shrine2 stands under a charred3 hillside as a water-dropping plane flies overhead near Ancient Olympia in southwestern Greece, 28 Aug. 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070901/1023470.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

A burnt-out roadside shrine stands under a charred hillside as a water-dropping plane flies overhead near Ancient Olympia in southwestern Greece, 28 Aug. 2007

Political commentators⁴ in Athens say whether the fires will have an effect on next month's general election depends on how the public judges the government's handling of the crisis.

But opposition⁵ politician Stavros Lambrinidis, a member of the European Parliament, tells VOA that now was not the time for political parties to fight.  He says the country is under a state of emergency and this is a time for political unity⁶.

"People can draw their conclusions without us politicians getting involved," he said.  "What we should get involved in is insuring that not one more life gets lost and not one more livelihood⁷ gets destroyed. And this a tough job ahead of us, we have to get it done. When I say we, I mean the government, but we as opposition have to push them to do it."

Scores of people gathered in Athens to voice their anger over what they described as the governments botched handling of the fires. Many of the demonstrators were from left-wing and peace groups.

Property developers have been accused of starting some of the fires to clear the land for future construction. It is a charge that angers Stratos Paradias, head of the Hellenic Property Federation⁸, a group that defends the interests of property owners.

"In my opinion there is not a chance that it might be some companies, some land developers or land seekers behind this disaster, we have, especially in the area of the Peloponnese," he said.  "This is because the legislation we have here in Greece today strictly⁹ provides that within three months from the day a forest area is burnt it goes under special legislation for re-forestation. These accusations¹⁰ have no base at all."

The government has confirmed that trees will be re-planted in all the fire zones.  The environmental group Greenpeace has said that weak environmental laws, careless farmers and garbage dumps are the main reasons for the fires.

Nikos Charalambides, director of Greenpeace in Greece, tells VOA that it is too early to establish who is responsible for the fires.

"What we can say, though, and that's something we can proves through facts and figures and statistics over the years, is that statistically¹¹ the most frequent causes of fires in Greece [...] are either sparks from electric wires or illegal dump sites which are set on fire, either intentionally¹² or accidentally, especially in summertime due to high temperatures," he noted¹³.

To add to the misery¹⁴ of the devastating¹⁵ fires, a strong earthquake with a magnitude of five struck southern Greece Tuesday. The quake panicked residents in the region and was felt in areas where firefighters were battling blazes.

1 arson   

n.纵火，放火

参考例句：

• He was serving a ten spot for arson.他因纵火罪在服十年徒刑。
• He was arraigned on a charge of arson.他因被指控犯纵火罪而被传讯。

2 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

3 charred   

v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦

参考例句：

• the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
• The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

7 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

8 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

9 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

10 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

11 statistically   

ad.根据统计数据来看，从统计学的观点来看

参考例句：

• The sample of building permits is larger and therefore, statistically satisfying. 建筑许可数的样本比较大，所以统计数据更令人满意。
• The results of each test would have to be statistically independent. 每次试验的结果在统计上必须是独立的。

12 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

13 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。

14 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

15 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。