VOA标准英语2008年-American Red Cross Offers Helping Hand

Whether it's wildfires in California, a hurricane on the Gulf¹ Coast or an earthquake in China, the distinctive² emblem³ of the American Red Cross can be seen at the heart of the relief effort. Faith Lapidus has more on the organization that has worked to relieve and prevent suffering in war and peace, at home and abroad, for more than a century.

As Hurricane Ike churned up the Gulf of Mexico on its way toward Texas recently, the American Red Cross was getting ready.

"While the public is sleeping and hurricanes are forming out in the Gulf, the Red Cross is on the move," says Suzy DeFrancis, the organization's chief Public Affairs officer. "We're moving people, supplies, equipment, cots, blankets, kits⁴ to various areas."
　

This photo of Clara Barton -- taken around 1865 by Mathew Brady -- is the most famous image of the founder5 of the American Red Cross.

The Red Cross was founded by Clara Barton in 1881 and chartered by Congress to "provide family communications and other forms of support to the U.S. military and maintain a system of domestic and international disaster relief."

Today, its mission has expanded to include supplying nearly half of the blood and blood products in this country and offering emergency resuscitation⁶ training and HIV/AIDS education. And, says DeFrancis, it remains⁷ on the front line of disaster relief.

"We set up evacuation centers for first 12 hours of the storm, and these become later shelters where people can have a place to sleep, a hot meal, some counseling as to what they should do next and as well as some mental health counseling," DeFrancis says.

Once the emergency is over and people can return to their homes, DeFrancis explains, the Red Cross continues its assistance, with meals, clean-up supplies and emotional support.

Volunteers make the difference

The organization relies on volunteers to do the bulk of that work and on voluntary donations from the public to pay for it all. President George W. Bush made note of that while in Texas to survey the damage done by Hurricane Ike.
　

The Red Cross helps people pick up the pieces of their lives after a disaster.

"The Red Cross is a vital part of helping⁸ people recover and helping people find the compassionate⁹ care that our citizens expect when there is a disaster such as this," he said, urging Americans to support the Red Cross. "I hope the country does not have disaster fatigue¹⁰," he added.

DeFrancis doesn't think disaster fatigue is a problem, although she admits that the high number of disasters the organization has responded to this year has drained its emergency fund.

"I think when people see others suffering, they give," she says, pointing to the response to the earthquake in Sichuan, China, in May. "The scale of that devastation¹¹ being so large, we saw an outpouring of support from the public."

Relief efforts by the American Red Cross are not limited to the United States. It works with the more than 175 other national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies around the world, providing personnel and funding for relief and recovery efforts wherever they're needed.

Staying in touch during disasters

The American Red Cross has invested in state-of-the-art communication technology. DeFrancis says the confusion after Hurricane Katrina three years ago highlighted the importance of having reliable communication tools to share information among relief workers -- and with the public.
　

The Red Cross' Online Newsroom features photos and audio reports from workers and volunteers in disaster zones.

"We're, of course, on the radio and on the TV and in the newspapers talking about where you can go to get help, but we're also now on the Web," she says.

In addition to blogs and text messages, the Red Cross uses its Web site to update the public. Its online newsroom received more than 100,000 hits during a recent emergency, and volunteers in disaster areas routinely use cell phone recordings¹² to post reports on the Web site about conditions in the area, as well as accounts of their experiences.

The Red Cross Web site also features a virtual check-in center; evacuees¹³ sign in, so friends and family outside the disaster area can check the site and learn they are safe.

A coordinated¹⁴ and cooperative response to emergencies

When a disaster strikes, the federal and state governments are also on the scene, and DeFrancis says her organization works closely with their relief agencies. FEMA and local police and fire departments, she notes, are responsible for rescuing or evacuating¹⁵ people.
　

For families evacuated16 from disaster areas, a Red Cross shelter becomes a home away from home.

"The American Red Cross is on the receiving end of those evacuees. We take them into shelters, we feed them, we give them comfort kits, we work with them on their recovery plans," she says.

The Red Cross also partners with churches, food banks and other social service organizations, because, DeFrancis says, they know their communities, and the communities know them.

"It's the kind of effort where government can't do it alone, and the Red Cross can't do it alone, but all of us working together can help these victims," she says.

1 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。

2 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

3 emblem   

n.象征，标志；徽章

参考例句：

• Her shirt has the company emblem on it.她的衬衫印有公司的标记。
• The eagle was an emblem of strength and courage.鹰是力量和勇气的象征。

4 kits   

衣物和装备( kit的名词复数 )； 成套用品； 配套元件

参考例句：

• Keep your kits closed and locked when not in use. 不用的话把你的装备都锁好放好。
• Gifts Articles, Toy and Games, Wooden Toys, Puzzles, Craft Kits. 采购产品礼品，玩具和游戏，木制的玩具，智力玩具，手艺装备。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 resuscitation   

n.复活

参考例句：

• Despite attempts at resuscitation,Mr Lynch died a week later in hospital.虽经全力抢救，但林奇先生一周以后还是在医院去世了。
• We gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and heart massage.我们对他进行了口对口复苏救治和心脏按摩。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 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。

10 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

11 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

13 evacuees   

n.被疏散者( evacuee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Moreover, for multi-exits, evacuees select a exit based on game theory. 在有多个出口时，疏散人员根据对策论选择出口。 来自互联网
• Evacuees wade through flooded area following heavy monsoon rains in Peshawar on Saturday, July 31, 2010. 撤离灾区涉水通过后在白沙瓦沉重的季风降雨在周六，2010年7月31日。 来自互联网

14 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

15 evacuating   

撤离，疏散( evacuate的现在分词 )； 排空（胃肠），排泄（粪便）； （从危险的地方）撤出，搬出，撤空

参考例句：

• The solution is degassed by alternately freezing, evacuating and thawing. 通过交替的冻结、抽空和溶化来使溶液除气。
• Are we evacuating these potential targets? 能够在这些目标地域内进行疏散吗？

16 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。