美国有线新闻 CNN 2013-11-15

 When government responds to severe weather, sometimes they declare a state of emergency or a state of disaster. The president of the Philippines declared a state of national calamity¹. That word, calamity refers to disaster event with significant loss and suffering. That's what typhoon Haiyan brought to many Filipinos. Hundreds, maybe thousands of people killed, survivors³ who've lost everything. The rescue in recovery efforts are ongoing⁴. US marine⁵ stationed nearby Japan brought emergency supplies. Disaster team from the US and United Nations are in the Philippines. Before they can help the victims of this storm, first they have to reach them.

 

Above the vast blue sea that separates the thousands of islands that make up the Philippines. A rescue mission is under way. We're traveling with the military to a remote group of islands devastating⁶ by super typhoon Haiyan. Yet to be reach by authorities. From the air, we could see the carnage. Home after home, village after village. Nowhere has been spared. On the ground lie the injured with broken bones and internal bleeding. They've waiting for days for a medical evacuation.

 

"We haven't seen anything like this before. I thought I only see this on television."  

 

There's a real sense of desperation here on the ground. While the focus is obviously on the sick and the injured are getting them to safety. The people of this hard hit island need food and fresh water. They've been without it for days and despite assurance from the government is yet to arrive. The problem facing the authority is logistics, getting supplies to these hard hit and remote areas and to the people who need. All these people have lost their homes. They're now staying in tents and makeshift shelters they've erected⁷ from the debris⁸ and while they said the received the storm warnings from the government and took what they thought was appropriate action. No one here anticipated that mother nature would unleash⁹ such fury.  

 

"At my age of 35, I've experienced a lot of typhoons. But this is the worst thing."

 

This airfield¹⁰ in C. has become the staging ground for the country's biggest relief operation. See 130 H. fly in survivors. All shelf shock from what they've just lived through.

 

"I can not see anything yet. I'm still in shock. I'm so sorry."

 

"A lot of people are dead. Our friends are dead. Some of our family members are dead. So, it's really devastating."

 

As the death toll¹¹ grows by the day, families here desperately¹² wait for news of their loved ones.

 

"I am the only survivor² of the family and I want to know that if they're still alive."

 

Having had no contact since the typhoon hit. Many say hope is all they can hold on to. Anna C., CNN, C., the Philippines.

1 calamity   

n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件

参考例句：

• Even a greater natural calamity cannot daunt us. 再大的自然灾害也压不垮我们。
• The attack on Pearl Harbor was a crushing calamity.偷袭珍珠港(对美军来说)是一场毁灭性的灾难。

2 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

5 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

6 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。

7 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

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。

9 unleash   

vt.发泄，发出；解带子放开

参考例句：

• They hope to create allies to unleash against diseases,pests,and invasive species.他们希望创造出一些新群体来对付疾病、害虫和一些有侵害性的物种。
• Changing water levels now at times unleash a miasma of disease from exposed sewage.如今，大坝不时地改变水位，从暴露的污水释放出了疾病瘴气。

10 airfield   

n.飞机场

参考例句：

• The foreign guests were motored from the airfield to the hotel.用车把外宾从机场送到旅馆。
• The airfield was seized by enemy troops.机场被敌军占领。

11 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。

12 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。