VOA常速英语2008年-Bush Surveys Tornado Damage in Tennessee

By Scott Stearns
White House
08 February 2008

President Bush has toured areas of the south-central United States hit by a series of tornadoes¹ this week. The storms killed at least 57 people and ripped apart houses throughout the area. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns has the story.

The killer² storms devastated³ parts of Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Alabama. Worst hit was Tennessee, where President Bush first surveyed the damage from a helicopter and then met with local and federal officials in the town of Lafayette.

"People have got to understand here in the region that a lot of folks around America care for them," he said. "I am here to listen to make sure that the federal response is compassionate⁴ and effective. I don't want people to think something is going to happen that is not going to happen. And therefore, when we say something is going to happen to help them get their feet back on the ground, it will happen."

The president has declared five Tennessee counties major disaster areas, which qualifies them for more federal aid.

These were the deadliest tornadoes in America in more than 20 years. Hundreds of people were injured. Hundreds of thousands more are without electricity.

Federal, state, and local emergency management teams are in the area as residents clear debris⁵ from storms that flattened⁶ houses and downed power lines.

1 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

2 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

3 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。

4 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。

5 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

6 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。