VOA标准英语2008年-Lack of Power Continues to Slow Texas Gulf Coas

Lack of electrical power is slowing efforts to bring normalcy back to southeast Texas, hit hard by Hurricane Ike last week. Private companies operating in the area have thousands of people working around the region, but many neighborhoods remain in the dark almost a week after the storm passed through. VOA's Greg Flakus has more from Houston.
　
Cleanup from Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas, 18 Sep 08

Electric line crews are at work in the hardest hit areas along the coast trying to restore downed lines, replace burned out transformers and reconnect communities to the part of the grid¹ that is functioning. The area that will likely take the longest to recover is Galveston, which sits on an island of the same name at the mouth of the bay below Houston.

Thousands of Galveston residents and property owners want to return, but city officials say it may be weeks before they can do so safely. Aside from the power problem, water is a major concern.

Galveston City Manager Steve LeBlanc says there are pumps operating to bring clean water to the island from a mainland station, but the combination of usage and leakage² from damaged facilities is more than the amount that can be brought in. He says the water situation is one of the major reasons why people should not return now.

"We don't have adequate water, at this point, for just taking a shower or flushing a toilet. We are still not there. We certainly do not have adequate water for fire protection. We do not have adequate water to supply the hospital, obviously. If you do not have a functioning hospital, it is not safe to come home," he said.

Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas says the University of Texas Medical Branch, located in Galveston, is operating on a limited basis, but can only provide urgent care. She says anyone with a health condition, like heart disease, should be aware that they are at risk if they come to the stricken city.

The economic impact of Hurricane Ike goes well beyond the several billion dollars in damage it caused. The lack of electrical power has forced many businesses to remain closed and several hundred thousand people are unable to return to work as a result.

Oil refineries³ located in and around Houston are operating, some with their own emergency generators⁴. The refineries are also working with less personnel because some workers are unable to travel because of lack of gasoline for their vehicles. People all around Houston are still waiting in long lines to fuel their automobiles⁵ at the few stations that are operating.

Another important economic asset in Houston is the port and the ship channel, with its many terminals where containers are unloaded for distribution to other parts of the country. Houston's port is the second-busiest in the United States under normal conditions, but Port spokesperson Argentina James, speaking to VOA by cellular⁶ phone, says limited electrical power is also hampering⁷ operations there.

"Generally, the port operations are being impacted because we are not operating with full electrical power. We are operating in spots with electrical power, which is a coordinated⁸ effort along the channel, in terms of our terminals," she said.

James says many port workers are at the facility trying to get things up and running, but they can do little until the private power company Centerpoint re-establishes service.

"We have been communicating very much with Centerpoint and we have been making our need known to the higher levels and everybody in between. So we believe they are working on it, it is just a matter of when," she said.

James says a large portion of the products imported into the United States that are available for purchase in food stores, hardware stores and other retail⁹ outlets¹⁰ come through the Port of Houston.

She says this port is also vital to the energy industry.

"We are the largest petro-chemical facility in the United States, second in the world, so when we are not able to bring ships in, it has an impact," she said.

James says there are close to 100 ships in the Gulf¹¹ of Mexico near Houston waiting to unload their cargo¹². If the port cannot open full operations soon, she says some of them may have to be diverted to other U.S. ports.

1 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

2 leakage   

n.漏，泄漏；泄漏物；漏出量

参考例句：

• Large areas of land have been contaminated by the leakage from the nuclear reactor.大片地区都被核反应堆的泄漏物污染了。
• The continuing leakage is the result of the long crack in the pipe.这根管子上的那一条裂缝致使渗漏不断。

3 refineries   

精炼厂( refinery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The efforts on closedown and suspension of small sugar refineries, small saccharin refineries and small paper mills are also being carried out in steps. 关停小糖厂、小糖精厂、小造纸厂的工作也已逐步展开。
• Hence the sitting of refineries is at a distance from population centres. 所以，炼油厂的厂址总在远离人口集中的地方。

4 generators   

n.发电机，发生器( generator的名词复数 )；电力公司

参考例句：

• The factory's emergency generators were used during the power cut. 工厂应急发电机在停电期间用上了。
• Power can be fed from wind generators into the electricity grid system. 电力可以从风力发电机流入输电网。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 cellular   

adj.移动的；细胞的，由细胞组成的

参考例句：

• She has a cellular telephone in her car.她的汽车里有一部无线通讯电话机。
• Many people use cellular materials as sensitive elements in hygrometers.很多人用蜂窝状的材料作为测量温度的传感元件。

7 hampering   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• So fraud on cows and development aid is seriously hampering growth. 因此在牛问题上和发展补助上的诈骗严重阻碍了发展。
• Short-termism, carbon-trading, disputing the science-are hampering the implementation of direct economically-led objectives. 短效主义，出售二氧化碳，进行科学辩论，这些都不利于实现以经济为主导的直接目标。

8 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

9 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

10 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

12 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。