VOA标准英语2015--On The Scene: Generosity Overwhelms Quake-Stricken Nepal

On The Scene: Generosity¹ Overwhelms Quake-Stricken Nepal

KATHMANDU—

Time is running out to find more survivors² of Saturday’s huge earthquake in Nepal, which the country’s prime minister estimates could have killed 10,000 people.

But the effort to get critical support into the landlocked Himalayan nation has ironically been hampered³ by overwhelming generosity, which has inundated⁴ the only international airport.

Tribhuvan International Airport now resembles a military base with planes, helicopters, soldiers and airmen from numerous countries -- not all of them on good terms with each other -- converging⁵ here for a humanitarian⁶ cause.

Saturday’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake may have killed as many as 10,000 people, according to Prime Minister Sushil Koirala.

U.S. Ambassador Peter Bodde welcomed a USAID Disaster Assistance Response team (DART), part of an initial U.S. contribution of $10 million for aid in response to Nepal’s worst earthquake since 1934.

“The government of Nepal is doing very well given their resources and the situation they have to deal with. A quake of this size would challenge any government and they’re a good partner.  I met with the prime minister this morning.  I offered him all the assistance that may be required and we will ramp⁷ up," he said.

The ambassador told VOA News he had earlier in the day met with the Nepali prime minister, pledging that the United States would do whatever is needed to help the landlocked Himalayan nation, one of Asia’s poorest, to recover from the disaster.

Landing at Tribhuvan, Nepal’s only international airport, at 1,300 meters altitude in the Kathmandu Valley is no easy feat⁸, even in the best of times and weather.

It is considered a hazardous⁹ approach and there is no instrumentation landing system. Serious accidents are not uncommon¹⁰.

The airfield¹¹, however, has been so choked with evacuation flights and other responding aircraft that they have prevented new planes from landing -- packed with rescue teams and desperately¹² needed food, medicine and water.

On Tuesday, a Thai Airways¹³ flight carrying a 70-person Japan Disaster Response squad¹⁴, journalists and other aid workers, successfully landed a day after it had embarked¹⁵ from Bangkok and then circled to the south for hours with two refueling stops in Kolkata, India before returning to Thailand.

As the flight rolled to a stop next to a huge Chinese military plane, a squad of Pakistani soldiers appeared. They walked past an Israeli military team, which was resting near a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster that had just landed after a 12,000-kilometer flight from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.

But precious hours have been lost with perhaps hundreds, if not thousands, of people trapped in the rubble¹⁶ beneath collapsed¹⁷ buildings all over the Kathmandu Valley.”

Quake overwhelms Nepal 

Among the first places some of the Japanese team rescue went was Kasthamandap -- Kathmandu’s namesake -- one of Nepal’s most notable pagodas¹⁹. There they joined Germany’s search squad.

At least 21 bodies have been recovered from the rubble.  Neighborhood shopkeepers say they are certain there are more buried.  

Jayanti Shreshtra says she saw two Asian male foreigners snapping photos at the pagoda²⁰ before it was destroyed by the quake.

“I was returning from the washroom and one man pulled me and shouted ‘run.’ Just at that moment the temple sliced like a cake and entered my shop," she explained.

The scope of the disaster is exemplified by Nepal’s urgent request for 300,000 tents. The United Nations says eight million people have been affected²¹ by the quake.  

Tents throughout Kathmandu are not only sheltering tens of thousands whose homes have been damaged or destroyed.

They are also refuges of solace²² where the mostly Hindu population is praying that one of Asia’s poorest nations will have better fortunes ahead.

As ambulances crawled through Kathmandu’s notoriously bad traffic, rain began to pour on the thousands of colorful tents-large and small -- that survivors have taken refuge in after their homes were destroyed.

One ambulance came to a stop in front of a two-story house that had just begun to collapse¹⁸. A passerby²³ said people were believed to be trapped inside.

At a nearby intersection²⁴ a policeman stood in the middle of a circle calmly directing traffic - a sign of some normalcy amid the devastation²⁵.

At one large roadside tent music emanated²⁶ from a harmonium accompanied by drums. Hundreds of people huddled²⁷ inside paid rapt attention to a guru offering prayers from the Bhagvad Gita for the dead and the survivors.

Many of those assembled were smiling, from small children to the elderly. Although a VOA News crew (composed of an American, a Myanmar national and a Sikkimese) briefly²⁸ intruded²⁹, they were quickly welcomed and felicitated - evidence that Saturday’s huge quake and the daily aftershocks have not dislodged Nepal’s reputation for hospitality to visitors.

Knowing that tens of thousands are going hungry amid the calamity³⁰, foreign aid workers and journalists hesitate to accept repeated offers of food and drink.

Nepal’s governance, weakened by decades of civil strife³¹, bitter political fracturing, corruption³² and incompetence³³, has little capability³⁴ to respond to a disaster of this scope. Instead, across Kathmandu neighbors can be seen taking care of each other and digging with their bare hands to try to extricate³⁵ the survivors and the victims from the rubble.

It is evidence that although much of Kathmandu’s cultural heritage of shrines³⁶, temples and monuments may now lay in ruins, Nepal’s greatest resource, its people, perseveres³⁷.

1 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

2 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

3 hampered   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions. 恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• So thought every harassed, hampered, respectable boy in St. Petersburg. 圣彼德堡镇的那些受折磨、受拘束的体面孩子们个个都是这么想的。

4 inundated   

v.淹没( inundate的过去式和过去分词 )；（洪水般地）涌来；充满；给予或交予（太多事物）使难以应付

参考例句：

• We have been inundated with offers of help. 主动援助多得使我们应接不暇。
• We have been inundated with every bit of information imaginable. 凡是想得到的各种各样的信息潮水般地向我们涌来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 converging   

adj.收敛[缩]的，会聚的，趋同的v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的现在分词 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集

参考例句：

• Plants had gradually evolved along diverging and converging pathways. 植物是沿着趋异和趋同两种途径逐渐演化的。 来自辞典例句
• This very slowly converging series was known to Leibniz in 1674. 这个收敛很慢的级数是莱布尼茨在1674年得到的。 来自辞典例句

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 ramp   

n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速

参考例句：

• That driver drove the car up the ramp.那司机将车开上了斜坡。
• The factory don't have that capacity to ramp up.这家工厂没有能力加速生产。

8 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。

9 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

10 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

11 airfield   

n.飞机场

参考例句：

• The foreign guests were motored from the airfield to the hotel.用车把外宾从机场送到旅馆。
• The airfield was seized by enemy troops.机场被敌军占领。

12 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

13 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。

14 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

15 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

16 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

17 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。

18 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

19 pagodas   

塔，宝塔( pagoda的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A dream is more romantic than scarlet pagodas by a silver sea. 梦中的风光比银白海洋旁边绯红的宝塔更加旖旎艳丽。
• Tabinshwehti placed new spires on the chief Mon pagodas. 莽瑞体在孟人的主要佛塔上加建了新的塔顶。

20 pagoda   

n.宝塔（尤指印度和远东的多层宝塔），（印度教或佛教的）塔式庙宇

参考例句：

• The ancient pagoda is undergoing repairs.那座古塔正在修缮中。
• The pagoda is reflected upside down in the water.宝塔影子倒立在水里。

21 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

22 solace   

n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和

参考例句：

• They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives.他们日常生活很艰难，就在宗教中寻求安慰。
• His acting career took a nosedive and he turned to drink for solace.演艺事业突然一落千丈，他便借酒浇愁。

23 passerby   

n.过路人，行人

参考例句：

• We had our photo taken by a passerby.我们请了一个路人为我们照相。
• A passerby heard her screams and rushed to her aid.一个过路人听见她的尖叫，便冲过去帮助她。

24 intersection   

n.交集，十字路口，交叉点；[计算机] 交集

参考例句：

• There is a stop sign at an intersection.在交叉路口处有停车标志。
• Bridges are used to avoid the intersection of a railway and a highway.桥用来避免铁路和公路直接交叉。

25 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 emanated   

v.从…处传出，传出( emanate的过去式和过去分词 )；产生，表现，显示

参考例句：

• Do you know where these rumours emanated from? 你知道谣言出自何处吗？ 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rumor emanated from Chicago. 谣言来自芝加哥。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

27 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

28 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

29 intruded   

n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于

参考例句：

• One could believe that human creatures had never intruded there before. 你简直会以为那是从来没有人到过的地方。 来自辞典例句
• The speaker intruded a thin smile into his seriousness. 演说人严肃的脸上掠过一丝笑影。 来自辞典例句

30 calamity   

n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件

参考例句：

• Even a greater natural calamity cannot daunt us. 再大的自然灾害也压不垮我们。
• The attack on Pearl Harbor was a crushing calamity.偷袭珍珠港(对美军来说)是一场毁灭性的灾难。

31 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

32 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

33 incompetence   

n.不胜任，不称职

参考例句：

• He was dismissed for incompetence. 他因不称职而被解雇。
• She felt she had been made a scapegoat for her boss's incompetence. 她觉得，本是老板无能，但她却成了替罪羊。

34 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

35 extricate   

v.拯救，救出；解脱

参考例句：

• How can we extricate the firm from this trouble?我们该如何承救公司脱离困境呢？
• She found it impossible to extricate herself from the relationship.她发现不可能把自己从这种关系中解脱出来。

36 shrines   

圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• All three structures dated to the third century and were tentatively identified as shrines. 这3座建筑都建于3 世纪，并且初步鉴定为神庙。
• Their palaces and their shrines are tombs. 它们的宫殿和神殿成了墓穴。

37 perseveres   

v.坚忍，坚持( persevere的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Although he is in poor health, he still perseveres in his studies. 尽管他身体不好，他仍孜孜不倦地学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This astounding cell will continue multiplying, reticulating as long as life perseveres. 只要生命延续，这种令人惊叹的细胞就会继续繁衍、交织变幻。 来自互联网