VOA常速英语2008年-At Least 44 Students Killed in Bus Accident in

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
16 April 2008

In Western India, at least 44 school students were killed when a bus plunged¹ into a river. Anjana Pasricha has a report from New Delhi.

The tragedy occurred early Wednesday, when dozens of school students were on a school bus, traveling to take an examination near Vadodara, in western Gujarat state.

 

The head of Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation, G.R. Aloriya, says the bus veered² off a bridge and plowed³ through a concrete railing and into a deep canal.

"Mostly students were there. [From] Five, six villages, the students boarded the bus in the morning because of exams," said Aloriya. "On Narmada bridge, the driver lost the control and it plunged into the main canal. The accident happened very close to the town. "

Rescue teams rushed to the site to pull the passengers out of the river, but they could only rescue a handful of survivors⁴. Dozens of students in the bus died. Three adults, including the driver of the bus, were also killed.

Officials say several passengers are still missing.

Grieving parents and relatives crowded the bridge. Many tried to revive their children as they were brought out from the canal. Many of the victims were girls.

Authorities say they will investigate the cause of Wednesday's accident.

Analysts⁵ have been drawing attention to the high number of road accidents in India. Last year, nearly 95,000 people died in road accidents.

Rohit Baluja, who heads the Institute of Road Traffic Education in New Delhi, says many factors - including a lack of road safety and poor driving skills - are to blame.

"Higher speeds, no management, no enforcement, lack of traffic engineering and drivers not being aware of the hazards, driver training is a big handicap, and all these factors combined together are actually responsible," said Baluja.

Schools buses have been involved in several fatal accidents in the past year. Last December, at least 19 people died in the northern state of Punjab after a school bus collided with a train at a railway crossing, apparently⁶ because of poor visibility.

1 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

2 veered   

v.（尤指交通工具）改变方向或路线( veer的过去式和过去分词 )；（指谈话内容、人的行为或观点）突然改变；（指风） （在北半球按顺时针方向、在南半球按逆时针方向）逐渐转向；风向顺时针转

参考例句：

• The bus veered onto the wrong side of the road. 公共汽车突然驶入了逆行道。
• The truck veered off the road and crashed into a tree. 卡车突然驶离公路撞上了一棵树。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 plowed   

v.耕( plow的过去式和过去分词 )；犁耕；费力穿过

参考例句：

• They plowed nearly 100,000 acres of virgin moorland. 他们犁了将近10万英亩未开垦的高沼地。 来自辞典例句
• He plowed the land and then sowed the seeds. 他先翻土，然后播种。 来自辞典例句

4 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

5 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

6 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。