NPR 2011-09-01

 From NPR News in Washington, I’m Lakshmi Singh.

 

A blackhawk helicopter airlifts more supplies to the most flooded areas of Vermont where people are becoming increasingly desperate. It’s been days since about a dozen communities were cut off from the rain and floods stemming from Hurricane Irene washed out roads and bridges. Vermont Public Radio’s Peter Biello takes us to the town of Killington which is serving as a hub for those areas most severely¹ affected². 

 

About half of the residents in the ski resort town of Killington are still without power and water. Extensive flooding ruined some roads but major roads are still passable. Emergency workers were able to drop off food and supplies last night. Suzie Dundas was in town of Killington, she says a lot supplies are being funneled³ through the town to other communities.

 

“No one expected roads to wash away. But everyone is in a pretty good spirit. We had a pretty solid effort at getting information out to everyone. I think the biggest concern people had is not knowing what’s going on. And we are working to remedy that as fast as we can.”

 

Vermont’s congressional delegation⁴ is working with the federal government to obtain additional disaster relief. For NPR News, I’m Peter Biello in Colchester, Vermont.

 

In New Jersey⁵, heavy flooding from last weekend's storm is reported in areas along the Passaic River which has crested⁶. Governor Chris Christie says the areas he toured are in an extraordinary despair. Christie warns the flooding is expected to continue through tomorrow. Authorities have ordered residents in Paterson to evacuate⁷. The Connecticut River is also rising, as of yesterday it was 23 feet above flood stage.

 

Federal regulators are disclosing more problems found at coalmines that were once owned and operated by Massey Energy, the employer of the 29 mining workers who were killed in an underground explosion last year. NPR’s Howard Berkes reports that two mines avoided a mine safety watch list by underreporting injuries and accidents. 

 

If the two West Virginia coal mines had accurately⁹ reported accidents and injuries they would’ve received more scrutiny¹⁰ by Federal Mine Safety inspectors¹¹, and they would have faced an immediate¹² shutdown of mining operations when serious safety violations¹³ were found. The mines were owned and operated by Massey Energy, which also owned the mine where 29 workers were killed in an explosion last year. Mine safety regulators forced the release of the company injury and accident reports by appealing to an administrative¹⁴ law judge. One of the mines was cited earlier for what regulators called outrageous¹⁵ conduct and behavior. Both are now owned by Alpha Natural Resources which has yet to comment. Howard Berkes, NPR News.

 

Negotiators for the NBA’s pro⁸ basketball players and management are back at the bargaining table for only the second time since the League’s lockout again. Both sides earlier said they wanted to hold a multiple negotiations¹⁶ before the end of August. They remain far apart on labor¹⁷ issues just as training camps prepare to open in October.

 

At last check, the Dow was up 11 points at 11,570. 

 

This is NPR.

 

The Obama administration is challenging AT&T’s plans to acquire T-mobile for 39 billion dollars. Deputy Attorney General James Cole says if the deal goes through, it could severely undermine competition in the telecommunications industry and lead to higher prices.

 

“Four nationwide providers account for more than 90% of the mobile wireless¹⁸ connections in America and preserving competition among them is crucial.”

 

If the deal falls through, AT&T may have to pay a breakup fee and benefits totaling about $6 billion.

 

The UN high commissioner¹⁹ for human rights is urging both sides in the Libyan conflict to refrain from committing further human rights violations or acts of retaliation²⁰. From Geneva, Lisa Schlein reports the appeal is to both parties even though Muammar Gaddafi loyalists are accused of carrying out most of the atrocities²¹.

 

UN human rights spokesman Rupert Colville says there’re unconfirmed reports of summary executions of pro-Gaddafi forces having been carried out by the rebels but nothing on the scale of those committed by Gaddafi’s men.

 

“It’s obviously a risk in this kind of circumstances. So for that reason, we publicly called for, for the National Transitional Council to, and other leaders, field commanders in particular to ensure their fighters don’t take retribution revenge.”

 

Colville says crimes committed by the warring factions²² must be investigated and prosecuted²³. For NPR News, I’m Lisa Schlein in Geneva.

 

By the way, new concern is surfacing under Libya’s rebel leadership that's racism²⁴. Amnesty International says researchers have witnessed maltreatment of the black Africans in Tripoli in recent days.

 

This is NPR.

1 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

2 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。

3 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。

4 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

5 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

6 crested   

adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点

参考例句：

• a great crested grebe 凤头䴙䴘
• The stately mansion crested the hill. 庄严的大厦位于山顶。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

8 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

9 accurately   

adv.准确地，精确地

参考例句：

• It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
• Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。

10 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

11 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

13 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

14 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

15 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

16 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

17 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

18 wireless   

adj.无线的；n.无线电

参考例句：

• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio.收音机里有许多无线电线路。
• Wireless messages tell us that the ship was sinking.无线电报告知我们那艘船正在下沉。

19 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

20 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

22 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

23 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

24 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。