VOA常速英语2019--季风季迫近 减灾工作分秒必争

Heavy rains are expected to fall in a few weeks. Aid agencies are racing¹ to shore up flimsy shelters and stabilize² shaky terrain³ before the monsoon⁴ season begins. The U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) says the work ahead is monumental but preparations are off to a better start this year than last.

未来几周可能出现暴雨。多个援助机构正在争分夺秒地为随时可能崩塌的避难所提供支持，同时稳固脆弱的地形，抢在季风季到来之前完工。联合国难民署（UNHCR）表示，未来的工作是里程碑式的存在，今年开了个好头，比去年要好。

Aid agencies last year had to deal with the massive influx⁵ of more than 740,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing violence and persecution⁶ in Myanmar. They arrived over a period of a few months, straining local resources and requiring vast amounts of humanitarian⁷ assistance.

去年，一些援助机构不得不应对74多万名罗兴亚难民的大规模涌入，这些难民是为了躲避缅甸暴力局势和迫害而来的。他们用了几个月的时间纷至沓来，导致当地资源枯竭，同时让大量人道主义援助成为必需。

UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic tells VOA there is a clear danger of this untenable situation becoming an emergency within an emergency if the vulnerable camp site is hit by a cyclone⁸ or torrential rains.

UNHCR的发言人是马赫西奇在接受《美国之音》采访时表示，有明显迹象表明当前风雨飘摇的局势可能演变为燃眉之急，因为目前不堪一击的难民营地可能因为热带气旋或者暴雨的到来而一击即溃。

Thanks to the mitigating⁹ work that has been done and there was some heavy engineering work in terms of flattening¹⁰ of the land, flattening of the hills…A lot of the work has also gone into shoring up the steep hills to prevent the landslides¹¹. We have also moved more than 26,000 refugees to safer locations, he said.

幸好减灾工作已经完成，而且在平整土地和山丘方面，也有大量的工程投入。

Mahecic says all the mitigating work has paid off. He says the refugee settlement made it through last year’s monsoon season without any major incidents or substantial loss of life.

马赫西奇表示，减灾工作有了成效。他表示，难民的落脚工作已经安然度过了去年的季风季节，没有遭遇重大事故或者重大生命损失。

There are assessments¹² that if the camps were to be hit frontally by a cyclone, that possibly up to 70 percent of the shelters would be destroyed, Mahecic said.

有人估测，如果难民营受到热带气旋重创，那么多达70%的避难所都将遭到毁坏，马赫西奇如是说道。

Besides strengthening camp infrastructure¹³, Mahecic says Rohingya refugees are being trained as first responders ahead of the cyclone. He says aid workers are going from house to house to inform people about the safety measures they need to take to better protect themselves from the monsoon.

除了稳固难民营的基础设施之外，马赫西奇表示，罗兴亚族难民也受到了培训，可以在热带气旋发生前做出第一时间的响应。马赫西奇还表示，援助人员挨家挨户通知人们需要知道的安全措施，让他们可以更好地保护自己免受季风侵害。

During the monsoons¹⁴, he says volunteer first responders will tell families how to prevent the spread of disease and will offer counseling in case of need.

季风季期间，他表示，第一时间响应的志愿者们将告诉各个家庭如何避免疾病传播，也将在需要的时候提供咨询服务。

1 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

2 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

3 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

4 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

5 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

6 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。

7 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

8 cyclone   

n.旋风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• An exceptionally violent cyclone hit the town last night.昨晚异常猛烈的旋风吹袭了那个小镇。
• The cyclone brought misery to thousands of people.旋风给成千上万的人带来苦难。

9 mitigating   

v.减轻，缓和( mitigate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Are there any mitigating circumstances in this case ? 本案中是否有任何情况可以减轻被告的罪行？ 来自辞典例句
• A sentencing judge is required to consider any mitigating circumstances befor imposing the death penalty. 在处死刑之前，要求量刑法官必须考虑是否有任何减轻罪行之情节。 来自口语例句

10 flattening   

n. 修平 动词flatten的现在分词

参考例句：

• Flattening of the right atrial border is also seen in constrictive pericarditis. 右心房缘变平亦见于缩窄性心包炎。
• He busied his fingers with flattening the leaves of the book. 他手指忙着抚平书页。

11 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。

12 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句

13 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

14 monsoons   

n.（南亚、尤指印度洋的）季风( monsoon的名词复数 )；（与季风相伴的）雨季；（南亚地区的）雨季

参考例句：

• In Ban-gladesh, the monsoons have started. 在孟加拉，雨季已经开始了。 来自辞典例句
• The coastline significantly influences the monsoons in two other respects. 海岸线在另外两个方面大大地影响季风。 来自辞典例句