The U.N. Children's Fund estimates one-third of all those killed by Cyclone Nargis in Burma are children. Burmese authorities report more than 22,000 people lost their lives and more than 40,000 are still missing.
联合国儿童基金会估计，热带风暴“纳尔吉斯”在缅甸造成的死亡人数中三分之一是儿童。缅甸当局宣布说，风暴造成2万2千人丧生， 4万多人失踪。
The U.N. Children's Fund says in any disaster, children suffer the most. And, the disaster, which hit Burma a few days ago, is no exception.
联合国儿童基金会说，不管发生什么灾难，儿童都是最容易受到伤害的群体。几天前在缅甸发生的热带风暴灾难也不例外。
Deputy Director of UNICEF's Office of Emergency Programs, Pierrette Vu Thi, says children are most at risk from getting sick. During a disaster, she says children are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
联合国儿童基金会紧急方案办公室副主任吴悌说，儿童生病的危险最大。在遇到灾难的时候，儿童特别容易受到剥削和虐待。
"A number of children have died," she said. "Many are separated from their families and injured and many are traumatized. We know, let's say from statistical experience that we can estimate that about a third of the affected population are children. We are still probably underestimating the impact and the gravity of the situation on the ground."
吴悌说：“一些儿童已经死亡。很多儿童与家人失散，有的受了伤，很多儿童受了外伤。我们知道，从统计学的经验上我们可以估算出，受热带风暴影响的人口中，大约三分之一是儿童。我们仍然很可能低估了飓风在地面上造成的影响以及局势的严重性 ”。
About 24 million people live in the five regions struck by Cyclone Nargis. The Irrawaddy Delta River area is the worst hit, with up to 95 percent of the population affected.
大约有2千400万人生活在热带风暴“纳尔吉斯”袭击的五个地区，伊洛瓦底河三角洲地区是受灾最严重的， 大约有高达95％的人口受到影响。
UNICEF has 130 staff members in Burma, all of whom, it says, responded within a day to the disaster. The aid workers distributed stocks of emergency supplies that had been pre-positioned in the country to the victims, including family health kits, water purification tablets, tarpaulins and mosquito nets.
联合国儿童基金会在缅甸有130名工作人员，他们在灾难发生的一天之内就作出反应。救援工作人员把预先在这个国家定点存放的紧急救援物资分发给灾民，包括家庭卫生箱，净水片，篷布和蚊帐等。
But, Vu Thi says these supplies are not enough to meet the critical needs. She says the agency is appealing for more than $8 million to provide assistance over the next three months.
但是，吴悌说，这些物资远远不够，无法满足紧急需求。她说，该机构呼吁有关各方提供八百多万美元以便在未来的三个月提供援助。
The United Nations has asked the Burmese government to allow 100 disaster relief experts to enter the country. Vu Thi says 12 UNICEF experts are included in this list. So far, she says a handful of people have been granted visas, but none of the UNICEF experts are among them.
联合国已要求缅甸政府让一百名救灾专家进入该国。她说， 12名儿童基金会的专家也在这名单上。她说，到目前为止，只有极少数人已获得签证，但没有儿童基金会的专家。
She says she is concerned that Burma's reluctance to accept outside help might be hampering the relief effort.
她说，她忧虑的是，缅甸的不愿接受外界的帮助，可能会阻碍了救援工作。
"We are finding out that the scope of the catastrophe really requires now a major response and much bigger than what we are able to deliver now in the country on the ground," she said. "We are aware of this and we are very worried about that. Now, whether this is affecting lives directly in terms of causing deaths, that I cannot answer."
吴悌说：“我们发现，这次灾难的规模确实需要立即作出有力回应，需要我们在这个国家的灾区提供多于目前已分发的救援物资。我们都意识到这一点，这使得我们很担心。至于目前的延误是否会直接造成生命死亡，我无法提供答案。”
Vu Thi says it is urgent that the emergency response be stepped up. She says assessments need to be made to know the extent of the damage, the impact on the survivors and the needs. She says she fears more tragedies will be discovered in the coming days.
吴悌说，应该加强紧急灾情反应，这是迫在眉睫的。她说，现在迫切需要作出评估，以了解灾难的规模、对幸存者的影响以及他们的需要。她说，她担心在未来的几天将会发现更多的悲剧。 |