VOA慢速英语--美国西部火灾造成的空气窒息情况恶化

Wildfires burning across the western United States will continue releasing¹ smelly, harmful air until later in the week or after that, scientists say. They add that the smoky, cloud-covered skies might last even longer.

People in Oregon, Washington and parts of California were struggling with yellowish-green smog caused by the fires. The air is the worst, most unhealthy air on the planet², by some measurements³.

The bad air is everywhere. It has entered homes and businesses. It caused the Oregon Zoo in Portland to close. No one can escape it.

"I don't think that we should be outside, but at the same time, we've been cooped up in the house already for months," said Issa Ubidia-Luckett of Portland. "I mean, we shouldn't be outside period."

Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality extended⁴ its air quality warning until Thursday. It was supposed to end on Monday.

On Monday, Alaska Airlines announced it was suspending⁵ flights to Portland and Spokane, Washington, until late Tuesday. The company said the air was too thick.

Zoe Flanagan has lived in Portland for 12 years. She rarely leaves her house. She went out into the smog to walk her two dogs Monday.

"I can feel it in my chest and.... I just couldn't get enough water, I had a headache," she said.

Dylan Darling is a spokesman⁶ for Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality.

"I grew up in Oregon and lived here a long time, and to see this much smoke for this long and wide spreading, really stands out in the state's history," he said.

Some areas of central California covered with smoke are not likely to see conditions improve until October, said meteorologist Dan Borsum. He is studying weather conditions and sharing his information with firefighters in Northern California.

"It's going to take a...strong weather pattern to move all the smoke," he told reporters Sunday night.

Borsum added that smoke from over 20 wildfires in the West and throughout California is gathering⁷ in the Central Valley. The area already has some of California's worst air quality, even before the wildfires.

Darling said that during earlier wildfires in Oregon, such as the fires of 2017, people could travel to other parts of the state for fresh air. Not this time.

"There just isn't a place in Oregon right now to find fresh air," Darling said.

Tyler Kranz is a meteorologist at the U.S. National Weather Service office in Portland. He said Oregon will need strong winds blowing from the ocean towards land to clear the air. But he said there needs to be a "perfect balance" of wind so that it blows away the smoke but does not start more fires.

"We need the winds to get the smoke out of here," Kranz said. "We just don't want them to be too strong, because then they could fan those flames and all of a sudden those fires are spreading again."

Words in This Story

smog – n. thick, dirty air and fog

meteorologist – n. a weather expert

cooped up – v. trapped inside with no relief

pattern – n. a repetitive system

fan – v. to increase air flow

1 releasing   

v.释放( release的现在分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• Releasing his arm, she laid her hand upon his shoulder. 她放掉他的胳膊，却把手放到了他的肩上。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
• The drag operation is still terminated by releasing the mouse button. 释放鼠标按键时，拖动操作将立即终止。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

2 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

3 measurements   

n.量度( measurement的名词复数 )；测量；衡量；（量得的）尺寸

参考例句：

• The second group of measurements had a high correlation with the first. 第二组测量数据与第一组高度相关。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In the metric system, measurements are made in metres and liters. 在公制中，用米和升作计量单位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 extended   

adj.延伸的；伸展的；延长的；扩大的v.延伸(extend的过去式和过去分词)；伸展；延长

参考例句：

• an extended lunch hour 延长了的午餐时间
• France has greatly extended its influence in world affairs. 在世界事务中，法国的影响已大大地扩大了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 suspending   

v.悬( suspend的现在分词 )；延缓；暂停；使暂时停职（或停学等）

参考例句：

• This swelling is accomplished by suspending the exchanger in either strong acid or strong base. 要完成这种膨胀需要把交换剂悬浮在强酸或强碱中。 来自辞典例句
• In its simplest form, it consists of a ball suspending by a string. 最简单的形式是用细绳吊挂着一个球。 来自辞典例句

6 spokesman   

n.发言人，代言人

参考例句：

• The government spokesman gave a quick briefing to the reporters.政府发言人向记者们作了情况简介。
• They drew lots to decide who should be their spokesman.他们抽签决定谁是他们的发言人。

7 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。