VOA标准英语2009年-Powerful Bomb Kills 40 in Southern Afghani

Police in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar say 40 people are dead and 64 injured after an apparent truck bomb exploded. It is the deadliest blast in the country since an attack on the Indian Embassy more than a year ago.
　
People look at the destruction left by a car bomb in Kandahar, 25 Aug 2009

Residents of Kandahar describe the blast as shaking the city as if a powerful earthquake had struck.

Authorities on Ogata Road describe a scene of widespread devastation¹ with 10 residential² buildings torn apart by the powerful explosion.

The blast took place shortly after dusk when Muslims were breaking their fast during the month of Ramadan.

Kandahar provincial³ council head Ahmad Wali Karzai, brother of the country's president, lives less than a kilometer away. He tells VOA many of the casualties are women and children.

Karzai says the blast knocked out windows and blew doors off buildings in a half-kilometer radius⁴. He adds rescue teams are attempting to reach those trapped in collapsed⁵ structures.

Hours earlier in Kabul, election officials announced the first partial results of last week's presidential election that show the incumbent⁶, Hamid Karzai, with a slim lead over his closest challenger.

Local authorities tell VOA the explosion in Kandahar took place equidistant from the office of a Japanese road construction company, a restaurant and the Kandahar branch of the national intelligence agency. The blast was 200 meters from a guest house popular with foreign journalists.

Police say they are unsure which building was the target, but they suspect the attack was carried out by a Taliban suicide bomber⁷.

Kandahar, the most populous⁸ city in southern Afghanistan, is a Taliban insurgent⁹ stronghold.

The last time Afghanistan experienced a higher number of deaths in a single incident was in July last year when a suicide car bomber killed 60 people, including two senior diplomats¹⁰, in an attack outside the Indian embassy in Kabul.

1 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》

2 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。

3 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

4 radius   

n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限

参考例句：

• He has visited every shop within a radius of two miles.周围两英里以内的店铺他都去过。
• We are measuring the radius of the circle.我们正在测量圆的半径。

5 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。

6 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

7 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

8 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

9 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。

10 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》