新西兰英语 252 Tsunami Warning

　　Two hours after the 8.8 earthquake in Chile last night, the Pacific Tsunami¹ Warning Center said that a tsunami had started. It hit parts of Chile and moved across the Pacific. The New Zealand Civil Defence and police moved quickly to send messages on radio and TV and to close beaches. There was a fear that a tsunami could reach the coast of New Zealand, especially the east coast.
Many beach events were cancelled such as the dragon boat racing² in Wellington. The Auckland harbour and Cook Strait ferries did not sail this morning. Five ships and a cruise³ ship in Auckland harbour were moved to a deep harbour for the day. People who wanted to spend this warm summer day at the beach were told to keep away. Some people took no notice and went swimming or surfing; however most people remember the terrible tsunami in Samoa in September last year and did not want to take a chance. Listen to Sept 30th 2009 and Oct 2nd 2009 for more about the tsunami in Samoa.
A dangerous tsunami did not reach New Zealand but there were strong sea currents, long waves, sudden sea level rises and very strange surges⁴ of water with the water coming in and going out a long way. In one harbour in the Far North, the water was “like a washing machine”.
By early evening the tsunami warning was cancelled but Civil Defence is still waiting until the morning to make sure the sea is safe.
Meanwhile, Chileans living in New Zealand are trying to contact their families and friends in Chile. Communication is still difficult with phone and electricity lines down.

1 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。

2 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

3 cruise   

v.巡航，航游，缓慢巡行；n.海上航游

参考例句：

• They went on a cruise to Tenerife.他们乘船去特纳利夫岛。
• She wants to cruise the canals of France in a barge.她想乘驳船游览法国的运河。

4 surges   

n.奔涌向前( surge的名词复数 )；（数量的）急剧上升；（感情等）洋溢；浪涛般汹涌奔腾v.（波涛等）汹涌( surge的第三人称单数 )；（人群等）蜂拥而出；使强烈地感到

参考例句：

• The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping. 黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The raging tide of revolution surges forward. 革命怒潮汹涌澎湃。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》