美国有线新闻 CNN 加州山火肆虐 过火面积创历史新高

In the U.S. state of California, this gives you an idea of why the governor¹ just declared a state of emergency.

美国加利福利尼亚州州长宣布进入紧急状态，下面来解释一下原因。

It applies to five counties² in the central and southern areas of the state. That's where three wildfires are burning. They've chewed through tens of thousands of acres. They've forced thousands of people to evacuate³ and they have destroyed some homes. Statewide, California has lost more land to wildfires this year than at any other year on record.

加州中部和南部地区的五个县进入紧急状态。这些地区有三起山火在燃烧。山火已经吞噬了数万英亩土地。这导致数千名居民被迫撤离，多座房屋被毁。今年，加州全州因山火而损失的土地创下有记录以来的新高。

More than two million acres have burned in 2020. And though the state has a wildfire season which typically lasts from the spring through the fall, it often hits its worst point in October and November, so fire officials are particularly concerned about that. Over the weekend California broke temperature records that have stood since the 1950s.

2020年，有超过200万英亩土地被烧毁。尽管加州的山火季通常从春季持续至秋季，但最严重的山火往往发生在10月和11月，因此，消防官员对此特别关注。上周末，加州打破了自上世纪50年代以来的气温记录。

Though it's been cooler than average in the central part of the United States, areas of the west have seen sweltering heat waves and that can make wildfires worse. In the state's hot dry conditions, lightning strikes have been blamed for causing many of the wildfires, but a party where a type of firework was set off is responsible for one of the recent ones. In addition to the round the clock efforts of the firefighters, the state of emergency declaration⁴ will speed up help and money to the residents⁵ who've been affected⁶.

虽然加州的气温比美国中部地区的平均气温要低，但西部地区已经出现酷热难耐的热浪，而这会加剧火势。在加州炎热干燥的情况下，雷击被认为是引发多起山火的罪魁祸首，但最近一起山火由派对上燃放烟花而引起。除了消防员在昼夜不停的努力，紧急状态声明将使受灾居民获得帮助和资金援助的进程加快。

1 governor   

n.统治者，地方长官(如省长，州长，总督等)

参考例句：

• The governor was an expert at fencing with reporters.这位州长是搪塞新闻记者的能手。
• He was elected governor of the state of California.他当选为加州州长。

2 counties   

郡，县( county的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The deposits spread for 100 kilometers across four counties. 这些矿藏绵延一百公里，跨越四个县。
• The Jinggang Mountains stand where the boundaries of four counties meet. 井冈山位于四县之交。

3 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

4 declaration   

n.宣布，宣告，宣言，声明（书），申报

参考例句：

• We read the declaration posted on the bulletin board.我们读了贴在布告板上的声明。
• At the recent convention a declaration was adopted.在最近举行的大会上通过了一项宣言。

5 residents   

n.居民( resident的名词复数 )；（旅馆的）住宿者

参考例句：

• Plans to build a new mall were deep-sixed after protests from local residents. 修建新室内购物中心的计划由于当地居民反对而搁浅。
• Local residents have reacted angrily to the news. 当地居民对这一消息表示愤怒。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。