256 救援人员在印度灾区进行救灾工作

 

Relief Workers Struggle in Flood Stricken India

Anjana Pasricha

New Delhi

27 Jul 2001 12:33 UTC

 

The floods are the worst in recent 1)decades, and have claimed more than 80 lives in the devastated¹ coastal² region.

Officials in Orissa say swollen³ rivers have begun to recede⁴, but nearly 15,000 villages are still surrounded by stagnating⁵ flood waters. A massive relief operation is underway to reach the tens-of-thousands of people who remain without access to food and clean water.

Soldiers and relief workers are 2)fanning out in districts which had been inaccessible⁶, 3)ferrying food supplies and medicines by boat. 4)Helicopters continue to airdrop relief. But aid workers say damaged roads and a 5)shortage of boats are making it difficult to reach remote areas, despite 6)sufficient supplies of relief material. Heavy 7)monsoon⁷ rains triggered the floods two weeks ago, forcing nearly one million people to flee their homes. Thousands have taken refuge in makeshift camps.

So far 18 people have died from waterborne diseases. Orissa's special relief 8)commissioner, H.K. Panda, says authorities are battling to prevent an outbreak of diarrhea and malaria⁸, and also to save the lives of farm animals. "The other focus at this moment is giving people 9)sanitation and pure water, and also vaccination⁹ of animals and fodder¹⁰ for the animals. This is what we are focusing on now," says Mr. Panda. "We have stocked enough material. The number of doctors is not adequate, but we are supporting this through 10)paramedics."

There are worries that much of the recently planted 11)paddy crop could be lost. That would be another setback¹¹ for farmers who had hoped that a good monsoon would allow them to recover from the effects of a 12)drought last year.

Mr. Panda says the state government is trying to 13)salvage the crops. "Restoration of crop - agricultural crop - that is the most challenging task now," he says. "While we can do something on the health front, the way the water is 14)stagnating, how will we be able to revive another round of crops for the farmers, because most of the affected¹² people are farmers, and that of course is a difficult task." The floods are the third major natural disaster to hit Orissa in three years, leaving the state's people and economy particularly 15)vulnerable. A super cyclone¹³ in 1999 was followed by a drought last year. Orissa is one of India's poorest states.

 

 

(1)      decade[5dekeId]n.十年, 十

(2)      fan out散开

(3)      ferry[5ferI]n.摆渡, 渡船vt.渡运,运送vi.摆渡, (船)来往行驶

(4)      helicopter[5helIkRptE(r)]n.直升(飞)机, 直升机

(5)      shortage[5FC:tIdV]n.不足, 缺乏

(6)      sufficient[sE5fIF(E)nt]adj.充分的, 足够的

(7)      monsoon[mRn5su:n]n.季候风, (印度等地的)雨季, 季风

(8)      commissioner[E5mIFEnE(r)]n.委员, 专员

(9)      sanitation[sAnI5teIF(E)n]n.卫生, 卫生设施

(10)      paramedic[pArE5medIk]n.伞兵军医, 护理人员

(11)      paddy[`pAdI]n.稻, 谷

(12)      drought[draJt]n.干旱, 缺乏

(13)      salvage[5sAlvIdV]vt.海上救助, 抢救, 打捞, 营救

(14)      stagnate[stA^5neIt; (?@) 5stA^neIt]v.(使)淤塞, (使)停滞, (使)沉滞, (使)变萧条

(15)      vulnerable[5vQlnErEb(E)l]adj.易受攻击的, 易受...的攻击

 

 

1 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

2 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。

3 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

4 recede   

vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进

参考例句：

• The colleges would recede in importance.大学的重要性会降低。
• He saw that the dirty water had begun to recede.他发现那污浊的水开始往下退了。

5 stagnating   

v.停滞，不流动，不发展( stagnate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I feel I'm stagnating in this job. 我觉得，干这份工作我没有长进。
• ITT was stagnating when Geneen became the chief executive officer in 1959. 1959年吉宁出任行政总负责人时，国际电话电报公司正处于不景气时期。 来自辞典例句

6 inaccessible   

adj.达不到的，难接近的

参考例句：

• This novel seems to me among the most inaccessible.这本书对我来说是最难懂的小说之一。
• The top of Mount Everest is the most inaccessible place in the world.珠穆朗玛峰是世界上最难到达的地方。

7 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

8 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

9 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

10 fodder   

n.草料；炮灰

参考例句：

• Grass mowed and cured for use as fodder.割下来晒干用作饲料的草。
• Guaranteed salt intake, no matter which normal fodder.不管是那一种正常的草料，保证盐的摄取。

11 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

12 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。

13 cyclone   

n.旋风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• An exceptionally violent cyclone hit the town last night.昨晚异常猛烈的旋风吹袭了那个小镇。
• The cyclone brought misery to thousands of people.旋风给成千上万的人带来苦难。