NPR 2010-07-26

BP's chief executive may be out of a job soon. Several reports today say Tony Hayward will be replaced this week because of his handling of the BP oil spill in the Gulf¹ of Mexico. An official announcement is possible as soon as tomorrow. This comes as operations to permanently² plug the well start up again in the Gulf now that a tropical storm system is no longer a threat. Retired³ Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen wouldn't confirm talk about Hayward replacement⁴, but did say such a move would not change his priorities.

"My job as a National Incident Commander is to focus on unity⁵ of effort and making sure that BP, as the responsible party, uses the guidance it's been provided. And I'll continue to do that regardless of who is in charge and who I work with."

Allen says an effort to permanently plug the leak could start within the next several days.

The Taliban is reportedly offering to exchange the body of a US Navy sailor for insurgent⁶ prisoners. Two American Navy personnel went missing Friday in the eastern Afghanistan province of Logar. A Taliban spokesman says the other man is being held. Chairman of the US Joint⁷ Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen says a massive search is under way for the men.

"This is an unusual circumstance, and we will do all we can, everything we can. We've got a large number of forces focused on the return of these two individuals."

The BBC's Jon Leyne in Kabul has more on the ongoing⁸ search effort.

Two operations are now going on to try to recover the missing men. The first operation is to script negotiating process through tribal⁹ elders who say they know where they are. But at the same time, there's a massive sweep off the area by US forces and Afghan police calling people out from house to house with a loudhailer to try to find any information.

The BBC's Jon Leyne reporting from Kabul.

Heavy rains collecting into eastern Iowa's Maquoketa River yesterday broke through an earthen dam, sending a wall of water, sweeping¹⁰ downstream. Iowa Public Radio's Dean Borg says floodwater is eating away and approaches to the dam gave several hours' warning.

It was a spectacular site, more than 100 people watching swelling¹¹ waters, cascading¹² through a dam road way approach, sweeping utility pools, boats and docks from Lake Delhi, and even igniting a bobbing propane tank, sending flames into the sky. But Delaware County emergency official Jack¹³ Klaus says the floodwater spreading over downstream farm fields is generally sparing populated areas from feared flooding.

"Lake Delhi has between 1,100 and 1,200 residential¹⁴ properties. The estimates are at least 50% of them have water in the first floor."

The 81-year-old dam, first built to generate electricity, is owned by Lake Delhi recreation cabin owners. They say it'll be rebuilt. For NPR News, I'm Dean Borg in Iowa City, Iowa.

Residents in Illinois are also surveying damage from weekend storms.

This is NPR News.

Venezuela's president is threatening to cut oil supplies to the US. Hugo Chavez says that'll happen if there's a military attack from Colombia as tensions rise over charges that Venezuela's harboring Colombian rebels. Chavez broke off diplomatic relations with Colombia last week over the claims of the outgoing president there, a close ally of the US.

The death toll¹⁵ from a stampede at an outdoor music festival in the western German city of Duisburg rose to 19 today, with several hundred others injured. As NPR's Eric Westervelt reports, one of the organizers of the festival known as the Love Parade says the event will never be held again.

The stampede at the music festival has angered and shocked many Germans. Some are asking why hundreds of thousands of partygoers were funneled¹⁶ through one tunnel underpass to the festival grounds. Overcrowding there sparked the stampede that killed 19 people. The head of one of Germany's main police unions told the newspaper Bild that the union warned more than a year ago that the city of Duisburg was an unacceptable site for the Love Parade, which attracts enormous crowds. For a long time, it was held in Berlin. But in recent years, it's moved to various cities in the western region of Germany. Today, Rainer Schaller, a main organizer of the festival, told a news conference it's over for the Love Parade. The festival was always happy and peaceful, he said, but would now forever be overshadowed by this year's deadly stampede. Eric Westervelt, NPR News, Berlin.

Alberto Contador is cycling's new superstar. The 27-year-old Spaniard won his third Tour de France today in four years. He was able to hold off his challenger, Andy Schleck. He was 39 seconds behind

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

3 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

4 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

5 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。

6 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

7 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

8 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

9 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

10 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

11 swelling   

n.肿胀

参考例句：

• Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
• There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。

12 cascading   

流注( cascade的现在分词 )； 大量落下； 大量垂悬； 梯流

参考例句：

• First of all, cascading menus are to be avoided at all costs. 首先，无论如何都要避免使用级联菜单。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Her sounds began cascading gently. 他的声音开始缓缓地低落下来。

13 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

14 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

15 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。

16 funneled   

漏斗状的

参考例句：

• The crowd funneled through the hall. 群众从走廊中鱼贯而过。
• The large crowd funneled out of the gates after the football match. 足球赛后大群人从各个门中涌出。