VOA标准英语2009年-Death Toll Rises in Pacific Islands, Famil

By Mike O'Sullivan
Pago Pago, American Samoa
03 October 2009

 
Filifaiesea Vailolo carries suitcase through debris¹ left in wake of the tsunami² in the town of Pago Pago in American Samoa, 02 Oct 2009
Relief efforts are continuing in the Pacific islands of Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga, where the death toll³ is approaching 200 from Tuesday's earthquake and tsunami. Seaside communities are burying their dead and coming to grips with their losses.

The people of American Samoa are starting to clean up as they cope with their vivid memories.  Mormon Church official Stu Uiagalelei was teaching a children's class when the earthquake struck. 
 
"It was one of the mornings I'll never forget," he said.

Uiagalelei and his students fled to higher ground as the tsunami overturned cars and buses and sent a yacht skimming over a football field. A yacht lies wedged in front of his church. He says he watched people die, and rescued a Korean immigrant, but later discovered that bodies had washed up behind his church.

"As soon as we got up there, that's when the tsunami came. I was out there watching the whole thing passing by my eyes," he recalled.

In some hard-hit coastal⁴ regions, whole families were killed by the crushing tsunami. Juliette Foster knew one family - a shopkeeper, his wife and children. All of them, she thinks, were killed in the tsunami. 

She says every family has a story.

"I lost my aunt down on the other end of the island. They found her the same day, but we're still looking for my 12-year-old niece. We haven't found her yet, and I'm hoping we will soon," she said.

Sales clerk Tamuli Farami escaped with her eight children, but says the losses in these islands touch everyone.

"Some are relatives. Some are friends and neighbors. Some people they found in the road, and also in the streams, some on the side of the stores, so I feel sorry for those people," said Farami.

Rescue and recovery workers have come from around the world, and in American Samoa, people like Ben Raju of the U.S. Small Business Administration are preparing to make low-interest loans to homeowners, renters and business people. 

"When the long-term recovery aspect of it is reached, that's when individuals will be focusing on long-term recovery such as rebuilding and re-establishing themselves to the way that they were prior to the disaster," he said.

Juliette Foster assesses the damage to her truck and home, as she tries to comfort her children.

""They're always asking me every night, mommy, are we going to die? Is it going to come again? Is this the end of the world?" she asked.

Commerce and everyday life are slowly getting back to normal on these peaceful Pacific islands, but people say the wounds will take time to heal.

1 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

2 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

3 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

4 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。