Wrecked Ship Fuel Extraction to Take Weeks

　　A Dutch company that specializes in salvage¹ operations says it will take weeks to remove the fuel from a cruise ship that capsized off Italy's coast.

　　The company, Smit, says it plans to conduct a survey of the ship on Tuesday before the extraction process begins.

　　"It is a race against time to empty the fuel tanks on the ship after they finish the inspections² to find ... any other passengers or crew members," said Gaetano Benedetto, World Wildlife Federation's spokesperson in Italy.

　　The rough seas near where the Costa Concordia remains³ aground have raised concerns of a possible fuel spill. None of the nearly 2 million liters of fuel have leaked out, but anti-spill booms have been placed around the wreck⁴.

　　Italian rescuers have been searching for survivors⁵ inside the wreck of the cruise ship, which hit rocks and capsized off the coast late Friday.

　　The search resumed Monday afternoon, hours after the Costa Concordia shifted on its rocky resting place in bad weather, sending divers⁶ fleeing to safety.

　　Six people are known dead and 29 others remain missing. The ship's owners, Costa Crociere cruise lines, are blaming the accident on human error by the captain.

　　A company spokesman says the captain was steering⁷ on an "unauthorized, unapproved" course before the ship got stuck. He says the captain steered⁸ too close to shore and made decisions during the emergency that did not follow company procedures, which are based on international standards.

　　Captain Francesco Schettino is in police custody⁹, facing charges of manslaughter for allegedly abandoning the ship before all passengers were rescued.

　　Officials say that when the ship hit the rocks, passengers were ordered to put on life jackets and to board life rafts. However, passengers say the ship tilted¹⁰ so sharply and quickly that many lifeboats could not be lowered into the water.

1 salvage   

v.救助，营救，援救；n.救助，营救

参考例句：

• All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.抢救失事船只的一切努力都失败了。
• The salvage was piled upon the pier.抢救出的财产被堆放在码头上。

2 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

5 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

6 divers   

adj.不同的；种种的

参考例句：

• He chose divers of them,who were asked to accompany him.他选择他们当中的几个人，要他们和他作伴。
• Two divers work together while a standby diver remains on the surface.两名潜水员协同工作，同时有一名候补潜水员留在水面上。

7 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

8 steered   

v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导

参考例句：

• He steered the boat into the harbour. 他把船开进港。
• The freighter steered out of Santiago Bay that evening. 那天晚上货轮驶出了圣地亚哥湾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

10 tilted   

v. 倾斜的

参考例句：

• Suddenly the boat tilted to one side. 小船突然倾向一侧。
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。