飓风席卷岛国瓦努阿图

 　　Rescue workers began a massive relief operation in Vanuatu on Sunday following a devastating¹ cyclone² that killed at least eight people, sent thousands into emergency shelters and disrupted communications in the Pacific island nation.

　　A nine-member U.N. team was due to arrive Sunday to carry out an initial assessment³ of the damage from the Category 5 cyclone named Pam, which at its peak covered the entire country on satellite maps.

　　The storm destroyed entire villages, reducing buildings to timbers, tearing off rooftops, downing power lines and toppling trees with winds of more than 300 kilometers per hour (185 miles per hour).

　　Several other neighboring countries also were affected⁴.

　　Cyclone Pam Devastates⁵ Vanuatu

　　Officials said the airport in Vanuatu's capital, Port Vila, remained closed, though they hoped it might partly reopen later Sunday to allow in the first relief planes.

　　A change of course to the west sent Pam directly at populated areas. The U.N. Office for the Coordination⁶ of Humanitarian⁷ Affairs said there were unconfirmed reports of 44 more deaths in Vanuatu's northeastern islands after Pam drifted from the track that had been forecast.

　　People fleeing the storm's wrath⁸ flooded into more than 20 evacuation centers that were filled with thousands of evacuees⁹, government officials said. They awoke to much calmer weather Sunday, but many who ventured out around Port Vila have found their homes damaged or blown away altogether.

　　Aid officials said the disaster could be one of the worst the Pacific region has ever experienced. UNICEF said the cyclone affected at least half the population of Vanuatu, including about 54,000 children. Oxfam said water, sanitation¹⁰ and hygiene¹¹ supplies were an urgent priority.

　　Outlying islands

　　Fears remained high that outlying islands, where there are few support services, may have been especially hard hit by flash flooding and cyclone-related damage. One group, World Vision, warned it could take days or weeks to reach the most remote islands. Officials said they were still unable to contact any region outside the capital.

　　"Our communication link is still down,'' said Paolo Malatu, an official at the country's National Disaster Management Office. "We have not got any information from outside Port Vila.''

　　The storm struck as Vanuatu's president, Baldwin Lonsdale, was at a United Nations conference on disaster reduction in Japan. He appealed for international assistance, saying he was speaking with "a heavy heart."

　　A U.N. statement on a meeting between Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and  Lonsdale on the sidelines of the conference quoted the U.N. chief as saying Vanuatu "has already been suffering from the adverse¹² effects of climate change." He said "storms such as Pam only exacerbate¹³ the challenges that the country faces."

　　With Lonsdale away and unable to fly into Vanuatu, the government was being led temporarily by Charlot Salwai, acting¹⁴ minister for climate change, government officials said.

　　Officials on Sunday confirmed eight fatalities¹⁵, a toll¹⁶ that was expected to increase amid unconfirmed reports of dozens of dead in the nation's remote northeast region. At least 20 others were injured.

　　State of emergency

　　"We anticipate that [the death toll] will go higher, particularly as information comes from the remote islands. We are talking about islands that are remote and really small, with none of what we would call modern infrastructure,'' said Colin Collett van Rooyen, Oxfam's country manager in Vanuatu.

　　He added that the government had declared a state of emergency for Shefa province, where Port Vila is located, and that he anticipated it would eventually be extended to the entire nation.

　　Vanuatu, located east of Australia, consists of more than 80 islands in a Y-shaped archipelago, according to the U.S. State Department. The CIA World Factbook puts the nation's population at nearly 267,000.

　　Aid agencies in nearby Australia and New Zealand were preparing to send help.

1 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

2 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。

3 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 devastates   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的第三人称单数 )；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮

参考例句：

• Strip mining devastates whole regions, leaving bare and useless ground. 露天矿产毁坏全部区域，离开赤裸和无用的地面。 来自互联网
• Prostitution is a profession that devastates the lives of young women. 雏妓这个职业是对女孩子极度的摧残。 来自互联网

6 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

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 wrath   

n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒

参考例句：

• His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
• The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。

9 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

10 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

11 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

12 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

13 exacerbate   

v.恶化，增剧，激怒，使加剧

参考例句：

• WMO says a warming climate can exacerbate air pollution.世界气象组织说，气候变暖可能会加剧空气污染。
• In fact efforts will merely exacerbate the current problem.实际上努力只会加剧当前的问题。

14 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

15 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。