阿富汗强烈地震已致超过150人遇难

AS IT IS 2015-10-27 Quake Kills More Than 150 in Afghanistan, Pakistan 阿富汗强烈地震已致超过150人遇难

A major earthquake struck South Asia Monday. Early reports say the earthquake killed more than 150 people in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Hundreds more were reported injured.

A VOA reporter tweeted from Kabul that “conservative estimates” are 154 people dead and 1,191 others injured.

The quake was centered in the Hindu Kush Mountains of northern Afghanistan. The United States Geological Survey says the quake measured 7.5. It said the shaking was most intense about 82 kilometers southeast of the Afghan city of Feyzabad.

The hardest hit area was the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Officials there have confirmed at least 123 people killed and more than 950 injured.

The Afghan chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, said through social media, the earthquake was “the strongest one felt in recent decades.” He also urged people to stay away from buildings for fears of additional quakes.

The earthquake caused power and telephone outages in the Afghan capital, Kabul. Many people fled to the streets. Afghan office workers there and in other cities had no choice but to stand in the streets or sit next to roads after the disaster.

An eyewitness¹ in Jalalabad told VOA the quake sent people running. “We have not seen an earthquake this powerful. I was sleeping when I felt Earth shaking. I ran out for safety,” he said.

The Afghan provinces of Nangarhar and Takhar were hit hard. At least five people were reported dead in Nangarhar. At least 12 students were crushed to death in a stampede at a girls’ school in Takhar province. Another 30 injured students were taken to a hospital.

The earthquake also was felt in the capitals of India and Pakistan. In New Delhi, the quake shook buildings, while office workers escaped to the streets. In Pakistan, state-operated television says most of the victims died when homes or housetops collapsed². Landslides³ were also reported.

Pakistan’s military chief says troops were deployed⁴ and helicopters sent to aid civilians⁵.

Indian President Narendra Modi said through social media that his country is studying the damage. He also said India is ready to assist in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The U.S. Geological Survey also measured two smaller earthquakes measuring 4.7 and 4.8. These tremors⁷ took place in the same area and within 90 minutes of the major quake.

Words in This Story

province – n. any one of the large parts that some countries are divided into

decade(s) – n. a 10-year period

stampede – n. an occurrence in which a large group of frightened people run together in an uncontrolled way to get out of a place

tremor⁶ – n. a shaking movement of the ground before or after an earthquake

1 eyewitness   

n.目击者，见证人

参考例句：

• The police questioned several eyewitness to the murder.警察询问了谋杀案的几位目击者。
• He was the only eyewitness of the robbery.他是那起抢劫案的唯一目击者。

2 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

3 landslides   

山崩( landslide的名词复数 )； （山坡、悬崖等的）崩塌； 滑坡； （竞选中）一方选票占压倒性多数

参考例句：

• Landslides have cut off many villages in remote areas. 滑坡使边远地区的许多村庄与外界隔绝。
• The storm caused landslides and flooding in Savona. 风暴致使萨沃纳发生塌方和洪灾。

4 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 tremor   

n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震

参考例句：

• There was a slight tremor in his voice.他的声音有点颤抖。
• A slight earth tremor was felt in California.加利福尼亚发生了轻微的地震。

7 tremors   

震颤( tremor的名词复数 )； 战栗； 震颤声； 大地的轻微震动

参考例句：

• The story was so terrible that It'sent tremors down my spine. 这故事太可怕，它使我不寒而栗。
• The story was so terrible that it sent tremors down my spine. 这故事太可怕，它使我不寒而栗。