听播客学英语 186 海难

 　　This podcast uses words and expressions about ships and the sea. These words may be new to you, so on the podcast website I have linked some of them to definitions in the Cambridge Advanced Learners’ Dictionary. But if you are listening on iTunes or an iPod, obviously you won’t see these links. So, if you need help with what the words mean, go to the podcast website.

　　You will also see and hear that I refer to a ship as “she” and not “it”. A ship can be either “she” or “it” in English. And, no, I don’t know why!

　　Last week a fierce storm swept over England. It was in fact the worst storm for 17 years. Thirteen people in Britain were killed by falling trees and other accidents, and many more in other countries in Europe. At sea, off the south west coast of England, the storm damaged a large container ship, the MSC Napoli. Water broke into her engine room, and the captain decided¹ to abandon ship. A helicopter came to take all the crew to safety. Two tugs² then towed the ship to shallow water, where she went aground on a sandbank.

　　Then two more problems arose. Oil started to leak from the Napoli into the sea. Conservation experts feared that the oil would damage the sea birds and other wildlife along this beautiful stretch of coast. Thousands of sea birds have already been affected³ by the oil. A salvage⁴ company has now started to pump the oil from the Napoli into a small tanker⁵, but it may take two weeks to complete this work.

　　The other problem was that the Napoli, stuck on the sandbank, was listing heavily. About 100 of the containers on her deck slipped into the sea. The salvage company has started to unload the remaining containers onto a barge⁶ alongside the Napoli. It is important that this is done quickly as some of the containers contain dangerous chemicals.

　　Meanwhile, many of the containers which had fallen into the sea floated to the shore. People walking along the beach at Branscombe found containers full of cosmetics⁷, babies’ nappies, pet food, BMW motorbikes, car parts and many other things. The news spread, and soon hundreds of people arrived to loot the containers. In centuries gone by, it was common for people living near the coast in south west England to take things from ships which were wrecked⁸ on this rocky coast. But we did not think it was possible today. However, in England, you are legally allowed to take things from a shipwreck⁹, provided that you tell the authorities, and you return them to the owners if they ask for them. How many of the looters will tell the authorities what they have taken? How many will hide their loot and sell it on eBay after a few weeks when the fuss has died down? However, if you think you would like to come to Branscombe beach and join in the fun, you are too late. The police have now closed the beach to stop further looting.

1 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。

2 tugs   

n.猛拉( tug的名词复数 )；猛拖；拖船v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The raucous sirens of the tugs came in from the river. 河上传来拖轮发出的沙哑的汽笛声。 来自辞典例句
• As I near the North Tower, the wind tugs at my role. 当我接近北塔的时候，风牵动着我的平衡杆。 来自辞典例句

3 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。

4 salvage   

v.救助，营救，援救；n.救助，营救

参考例句：

• All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.抢救失事船只的一切努力都失败了。
• The salvage was piled upon the pier.抢救出的财产被堆放在码头上。

5 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

6 barge   

n.平底载货船，驳船

参考例句：

• The barge was loaded up with coal.那艘驳船装上了煤。
• Carrying goods by train costs nearly three times more than carrying them by barge.通过铁路运货的成本比驳船运货成本高出近3倍。

7 cosmetics   

n.化妆品

参考例句：

• We sell a wide range of cosmetics at a very reasonable price. 我们以公道的价格出售各种化妆品。
• Cosmetics do not always cover up the deficiencies of nature. 化妆品未能掩饰天生的缺陷。

8 wrecked   

adj.失事的，遇难的

参考例句：

• the hulk of a wrecked ship 遇难轮船的残骸
• the salvage of the wrecked tanker 对失事油轮的打捞

9 shipwreck   

n.船舶失事，海难

参考例句：

• He walked away from the shipwreck.他船难中平安地脱险了。
• The shipwreck was a harrowing experience.那次船难是一个惨痛的经历。