美国国家公共电台 NPR--The volcanic eruption makes it difficult to reach people in Tonga

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The volcanic¹ eruption² makes it difficult to reach people in Tonga

Transcript³

The Tongan community in Juneau, Alaska, still can't reach people more than a week after the underwater volcanic eruption. Telephone links are slowly being reconnected, and the internet is still down.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's still hard for people to find out about the status of their loved ones in Tonga after the recent volcanic eruption nearby. One family in Alaska worries about friends and family thousands of miles away on that island nation. Rashah McChesney reports from KTOO in Alaska.

RASHAH MCCHESNEY, BYLINE⁴: Melehoko Pauu Ma'ake has been dealing⁵ with two big problems since the volcanic eruption in Tonga, the first is reaching her uncle. He's 84 and lives by himself near the capitol, directly in the path of the tsunami⁶. And the second problem she laid out in a Zoom⁷ call with some family members a few days after the eruption.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MELEHOKO PAUU MA'AKE: The thing about Tonga is finding a very trustworthy source, you know? All of us here, we've been to Tonga many times.

MCCHESNEY: Ma'ake's family is trying to figure out the best place to send aid money.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MA'AKE: And we know that when funds go to Tonga, sometimes it really doesn't go directly to the people.

MCCHESNEY: And she is still grappling with this problem. So she called a group of her extended family to her home in Juneau to talk about what they know...

MA'AKE: Hey.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Hello.

MA'AKE: Come in. Don't take off your shoes. Come in here.

MCCHESNEY: ...And maybe figure out how they can help. Ma'ake was born in Tonga but moved to the U.S. when she was 4. She and her husband moved to Alaska after a visit. She estimates around 200 Tongan people live in Juneau. Telephone links between Tonga and the rest of the world are slowly being reconnected. But they're unreliable. And the internet is still down.

SIUA SEKONA: There's no connection. It's ringing, but...

MCCHESNEY: That's Ma'ake's brother-in-law, Siua Sekona.

S SEKONA: There's nothing like an answering machine or something that you can leave a message, nothing.

MCCHESNEY: Siua Sekona grew up in Tonga. Right now, his big concern is fresh water because most Tongans are not connected to city water.

S SEKONA: So they rely a lot on the rainwater.

MCCHESNEY: A lot of the fresh water supply is tainted⁸ by volcanic ash and salt water from the tsunami. A few aid flights have landed. And at least one ship has docked with supplies. But the family worries about there being enough to go around. At one point, Siua Sekona's daughter, Margaret Sekona, sits down at the dining room table, hunched⁹ over her phone. Her father and Ma'ake huddle¹⁰ in.

(SOUNDBITE OF MACHINE WHIRRING)

MCCHESNEY: Someone on the country's main island, Tongatapu, managed to get a connection and livestreamed a drive through the devastation¹¹. Margaret turns and looks at her dad.

MARGARET SEKONA: Can you tell where this is?

S SEKONA: I couldn't really tell.

MCCHESNEY: She says she's surprised to see buildings and houses standing¹², cars driving along the road. There are broken windows, downed trees. Everything is blanketed in this dark film of mud and ash. But...

M SEKONA: It's a little comforting, though, for sure to just be able to see at least something.

MCCHESNEY: Even though what she sees on screen right now is terrible, it's better than what she imagined. Siua Sekona tells everyone to have hope. He has seen what happens after the islands take a hit.

S SEKONA: They were sharing everything that they can share.

MCCHESNEY: This whole experience takes him right back to his own childhood. In 1982, one of the deadliest storms in Tonga's history struck. Cyclone¹³ Isaac, killed six people and left 45,000 people homeless. When he sees the video on Margaret's phone, his hands shake.

S SEKONA: It seems that I relive the experience again.

MCCHESNEY: Siua Sekona says he was on one of the outlying islands at the time on a mission for the Mormon church. He woke up at 2 a.m. as a storm surge swept him from his bed.

S SEKONA: You know, we were swimming because the - you know, the wave was so high.

MCCHESNEY: He's thankful that this time around, the eruption and tsunami happened during the day, so at least people were able to see it coming. As for Ma'ake's uncle, she still hasn't talked with him directly. But she finally heard from someone who heard from someone that he's OK - one less person for her to worry about.

For NPR news, I'm Rashah McChesney in Juneau.

(SOUNDBITE OF SEB WILDBLOOD'S "SKETCHES")

1 volcanic   

adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

2 eruption   

n.火山爆发；（战争等）爆发；（疾病等）发作

参考例句：

• The temple was destroyed in the violent eruption of 1470 BC.庙宇在公元前1470年猛烈的火山爆发中摧毁了。
• The eruption of a volcano is spontaneous.火山的爆发是自发的。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

6 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

7 zoom   

n.急速上升；v.突然扩大，急速上升

参考例句：

• The airplane's zoom carried it above the clouds.飞机的陡直上升使它飞到云层之上。
• I live near an airport and the zoom of passing planes can be heard night and day.我住在一个飞机场附近，昼夜都能听到飞机飞过的嗡嗡声。

8 tainted   

adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏

参考例句：

• The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。
• He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 hunched   

（常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的

参考例句：

• He sat with his shoulders hunched up. 他耸起双肩坐着。
• Stephen hunched down to light a cigarette. 斯蒂芬弓着身子点燃一支烟。

10 huddle   

vi.挤作一团；蜷缩；vt.聚集；n.挤在一起的人

参考例句：

• They like living in a huddle.他们喜欢杂居在一起。
• The cold wind made the boy huddle inside his coat.寒风使这个男孩卷缩在他的外衣里。

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 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

13 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。