致命龙卷风袭击美国东南部

致命龙卷风袭击美国东南部 　　

At least 35 people have now been confirmed dead after a massive storm system spawned¹ numerous tornadoes³ throughout the central and southeastern United States this week, leaving hundreds of communities destroyed across more than six states.

　　Many of those killed in Tuesday's outbreak of strong thunderstorms and massive tornadoes lived in the small industrial town of Louisville, Mississippi. Penny Bowman was one of many residents of Louisville who scrambled⁴ for shelter as the storms flattened⁵ scores of homes and other buildings. "It sounded like, my husband heard it, all I was doing was praying. But it wound up, all the trees hitting the house. It lasted about 30 seconds and it was gone," she explained. "But then all the sirens in town were still going off. Tornadoes were still coming toward this area. I understand there were about three that went through our town.

　　The storm system caused similar scenes of destruction as it moved east through the neighboring states of Alabama and Tennessee, leaving thousands of people homeless or without power.

　　Meanwhile, recovery efforts have begun in the central state of Arkansas, where 15 people were killed on Sunday, the first day of the outbreak of the storms. Volunteers from across the state rushed to the town of Mayflower, one of the worst hit areas of Sunday's outbreak.

　　"You know, the people of Arkansas are the ones that, you know, we're concerned with. And, we appreciate everybody bringing water and supplies and feeding us, and the Red Cross was nice and came out. But we understand there is a lot of people still missing and that's what we're concerned with right now," said resident John Ward⁶.

　　The storm system struck Arkansas on the third anniversary of one of the worst tornado² outbreaks in U.S. history, which killed more than 300 people and included nearly 122 reported tornadoes across the southeastern United States.

1 spawned   

（鱼、蛙等）大量产（卵）( spawn的过去式和过去分词 )； 大量生产

参考例句：

• The band's album spawned a string of hit singles. 这支乐队的专辑繁衍出一连串走红的单曲唱片。
• The computer industry has spawned a lot of new companies. 由于电脑工业的发展，许多新公司纷纷成立。

2 tornado   

n.飓风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• A tornado whirled into the town last week.龙卷风上周袭击了这座城市。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

3 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

4 scrambled   

v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Each scrambled for the football at the football ground. 足球场上你争我夺。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He scrambled awkwardly to his feet. 他笨拙地爬起身来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

6 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。