新西兰英语 45 The Weather – again

　　Once again, New Zealand has suffered from a low pressure system coming from northern Australia. Again a sub-tropical storm hit Northland first and has created havoc¹. Streams and rivers broke their banks, flooding low-lying land. Highway One was closed for a time because of the water across the road. The storm east moved to the Coromandel peninsula and the East Coast, including Gisborne and Napier. Around 300mm of rain fell in 24 hours. The rain was so heavy in places that it blocked drains and caused flooding. Heavy rain has also caused land slips and closed more roads. In one street on the North Shore of Auckland, people had to be evacuated² from 14 houses because of the land moving underneath³. In other areas, schools were closed and people had to be evacuated because of the danger from rising flood waters.
In Hawkes Bay, strong wind gusts⁴ of more than 130km per hour have brought down power lines and caused major power outages. At high tide, the sea battered⁵ the coast, smashing into holiday houses, causing terrible damage.
Near the south of the North Island, in the Manawatu, the wind was so strong that it over-turned trucks and tore down trees. People said they have never seen a storm like this before and they feel devastated⁶.
In the South Island, on the West Coast, the wind storm began at 4am. There were flying branches and roofing iron. Some buildings were demolished⁷ by the wind. Power lines were down. It was dangerous on the road with flying debris⁸ from trees and houses.
In Marlborough, on the East Coast of the South Island, a state of emergency was declared because of the flooding. Civil Defence people are working hard to make sure that everyone is safe. They have told people to stay at home if possible.
Further south a strong southerly is expected with snow on the hills to low levels.

1 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

2 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。

3 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

4 gusts   

一阵强风( gust的名词复数 )； （怒、笑等的）爆发； （感情的）迸发； 发作

参考例句：

• Her profuse skirt bosomed out with the gusts. 她的宽大的裙子被风吹得鼓鼓的。
• Turbulence is defined as a series of irregular gusts. 紊流定义为一组无规则的突风。

5 battered   

adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损

参考例句：

• He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
• The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。

6 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

7 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

8 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。