NPR 2008-09-14

Hurricane Ike has flooded or damaged thousands of homes in Texas and knocked out electricity to millions of people there. Officials are warning that it could take weeks before power is completely restored. But the storm surge from Ike was not as devastating¹ as had been feared and the center of the storm appears to have missed the major oil and petrol chemical refineries² in the Houston area. In downtown Houston though, the storm blew out windows and scattered³ debris⁴ as NPR's Cartier Don reports.

City officials have told people to stay in their homes and stay in there, wherever they have hunkered down, because they feel it's not safe for people to go out. Yeah, there's a lot of broken glass especially in downtown Houston, where there is a fair amount of windows that were shattered in skyscrapers⁵. And when we were there, you know, there were a lot of emergency service workers around, but not a lot of people, NPR's Cartier Don reporting.

The storm left most of the coastal⁶ city of Galveston under water, and the city is under a lockdown order. NPR's Ari Shapiro says people are anxiously awaiting word about friends and loved ones.

We met one gentleman who evacuated⁷ before the storm and he was really concerned about friends of his, a surfing buddy⁸ of his, his wife and their daughter who decided⁹ to stay in Galveston. He said he lost contact with them midday yesterday, and he hasn't been able to get back in touch with them. Yet, he was trying to get through to Galveston on 9:45 and discovered he wasn't gonna be able to get through. You know, he said, that his friends live in a house that survived the huge storm that wiped out most of Galveston in 1900, so he's hopeful that they made it through this storm all right, but he's really nervous and anxious waiting to hear from them. NPR's Ari Shapiro reporting.

ke has now been downgraded to tropical storm status, but meteorologist Corey Walton at the National Hurricane Center says Ike is still a powerful storm. "There's definitely still a threat for tornadoes¹⁰, through tonight over portions of northeastern Texas, northern Louisiana and much of Arkansas, and then also the possibility of southern Missouri. "

President Bush has declared 29 counties in Texas federal disaster areas.

The search for more victims of the commuter¹¹ train crash in Los Angeles has ended. Twenty four people were killed when a Metrolink train collided with a freight train. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa says emergency workers had a difficult time removing victims from the wreckage¹². "It was like peeling an onion to find the victims there." Patricia Nazario of member station KPCC says a Metrolink spokeswoman says the engineer of the commuter train was apparently¹³ responsible for the crash.

The Metrolink spokesperson said that the engineer failed to stop for a red signal just as a car on the street would stop or run a red light. In this case, the engineer of the Metrolink train ran the red light and he hit the oncoming train.

Patricia Nazario reporting from Los Angeles.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Hurricane Ike has become a focus of attention in the presidential race. Democratic nominee¹⁴ Barack Obama is calling on Americans to help those affected¹⁵ by the storm. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

In a morning rally at a downtown Manchester park, Obama said the people on the Gulf¹⁶ Coast are in his words "in our thoughts and prayers". The Democratic nominee did not lay all politics aside, saying there are many Americans who are hurting because they are out of work. "A lot of people are going through their own trials, and their own tribulations¹⁷. There are a lot of quiet storms that are taking place throughout America. All across America I meet people who have seen their jobs shipped overseas." Obama repeated his assertion that Republican John McCain doesn't get it, and he's out of touch with the American people. McCain is scheduled to appear at a NASCAR race in New Hampshire on Sunday. Brian Naylor, NPR News, Manchester, New Hampshire.

A series of bombs exploded in New Delhi today, one in a park, the other in crowded shopping areas. At least 18 people were killed and dozens of others were wounded. Islamist extremists have claimed responsibility for the attacks which the city's mayor is calling cowardly.

Federal officials and Wall Street executives met at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York today to try to work out a rescue plan for struggling investment bank Lehman Brothers, but the meeting has apparently ended. And the Wall Street Journal is reporting that it's becoming clear that what it calls "a clean sale of the bank" would be difficult to accomplish. Lehman is the nation's fourth largest investment bank, but it has been slammed recently by its exposure to risky¹⁸ investments in real estate related assets.

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 refineries   

精炼厂( refinery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The efforts on closedown and suspension of small sugar refineries, small saccharin refineries and small paper mills are also being carried out in steps. 关停小糖厂、小糖精厂、小造纸厂的工作也已逐步展开。
• Hence the sitting of refineries is at a distance from population centres. 所以，炼油厂的厂址总在远离人口集中的地方。

3 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

4 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

5 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。

6 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

7 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。

8 buddy   

n.（美口）密友，伙伴

参考例句：

• Calm down,buddy.What's the trouble?压压气，老兄。有什么麻烦吗？
• Get out of my way,buddy!别挡道了，你这家伙！

9 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

10 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

11 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

12 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

13 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

14 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

15 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。

16 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。

17 tribulations   

n.苦难( tribulation的名词复数 )；艰难；苦难的缘由；痛苦

参考例句：

• the tribulations of modern life 现代生活的苦恼
• The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence. 这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。