2006年VOA标准英语-Powerful Earthquake Shakes Southern Greece

By Challiss McDonough
Cairo
08 January 2006

Rubble¹ in a cafeteria in the old port town of Hania  
  
A powerful earthquake has shaken southern Greece, but there are no reports of serious injuries or widespread damage. The tremor² was felt all around the eastern Mediterranean³, as far away as Italy and Egypt.

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Much to the relief of Greek authorities, only a few minor⁴ injuries have been reported from islands in southern Greece, and no more than moderate damage to about 50 homes. With a quake of that size, the situation could easily have been much worse.

The Athens Geodynamic Institute gave the quake a preliminary magnitude of 6.9, while the U.S. Geological Survey, which monitors seismic⁵ activity around the world, measured it at 6.7.

The quake was centered north of Crete, and about 70 kilometers beneath the sea. Seismologists believe the depth of the epicenter is one reason for the lack of major damage or heavy injuries.

But the tremor was powerful enough to shake buildings in Cairo for several seconds, roughly a thousand kilometers away. It was also widely felt in southern Italy, and as far east as Jordan.

Greek seismologists say there have been several strong aftershocks.

Greece and the eastern Mediterranean are prone⁶ to earthquakes. A 5.9-magnitude tremor in 1999 killed at least 143 people in Athens and rendered tens of thousands homeless.

1 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

2 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。

3 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

4 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

5 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

6 prone   

adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的

参考例句：

• Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
• He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。