VOA标准英语2010年-UN Aid Groups Cite Progress in Haiti

United Nations aid agencies report they are making progress in getting crucial relief to hundreds of thousands of survivors¹ of Haiti's devastating² earthquake.  The agencies say they are increasing efforts to try to reach people in areas outside the capital, Port-au-Prince.

Since the earthquake struck a week ago, aid efforts have been primarily centered on the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.  Damaged roads and bridges, and debris³ from collapsed⁴ buildings have made it impossible to reach some outlying areas.

But, Office of the Coordination⁵ of Humanitarian⁶ Assistance spokeswoman Elizabeth Byrs says aid workers are increasing their efforts to reach areas outside Port-au-Prince.

People walk down a street with several fires burning in Port-au-Prince, 17 Jan 2010

She says reports of the level of destruction in some of these areas are staggering.  Some towns have been practically destroyed.

She says people there are in desperate need of food, water and medical care.

Byrs says engineers are needed to repair roads and bridges and to remove heavy debris blocking aid routes.

Heavily populated Port-au-Prince suffered enormous damage and aid agencies have been struggling for the past week to reach the victims.

But World Food Program spokeswoman Emilia Casella says progress is being made.  She says more than 270,000 people have received food assistance. 

She says the World Food Program  often is frustrated⁷ in its efforts to provide assistance because of the conditions.  For instance, she says it aimed to reach 100,000 people with food aid Monday, but was only able to reach 60,000.

"We were unable to get to the full amount we hoped to yesterday due to a number of issues including aftershocks, which further damaged our warehouse⁸ and it made it very difficult to load some of the food that was in the warehouse locations," she explained.  "So, that did reduce the amount that we were able to get out.   But, nevertheless, progress is really very much being made," she said. 

In the coming week, Casella says the World Food Program hopes to distribute 10 million ready-to-eat rations⁹.  In addition, she says more than four million special high-nutritional food rations will be distributed to children.

She says the World Food Program has identified more than 280 sites in and around Port-au-Prince where people gather to find food.  She says her agency will use mobile units to bring aid to them. 

Furthermore, she says four fixed¹⁰ distribution sites are being set up where people can go to get food.

 

1 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

2 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。

3 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。

4 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

5 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

6 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

7 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

9 rations   

定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量

参考例句：

• They are provisioned with seven days' rations. 他们得到了7天的给养。
• The soldiers complained that they were getting short rations. 士兵们抱怨他们得到的配给不够数。

10 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。