万花筒 2011-08-04&08-06 美德克萨斯州大旱

 Don tropical from Don could bring so much needed rain to south Texas. But let's tell you a little bit about what's going on in Texas. The entire state, 99% of the state is in the level of drought right now. If you look at the bright red areas. That puts its about 75% of the state Texas into the worst level of drought. 75%, our Ryan in Texas' this morning to talk about more its worst drought and costliest¹ drought in history, Ryan. 

 

This is a lake Travill's, Texas. or what's left of it, it's been awfully² long time since anyone could use this slide which may explain why some here are actually praying for a hurricane. Rancher Skido Stores can barely believe his eyes when he looks at the pond that supposed to provide enough water for his cattle. But his tape-measure doesn't lie where there used to be 12 feet of water, there are cracks in the mud almost a foot down. 

 

--We love to see tropical storm that would bring a plenty of moisture not only wind would hit the spot. 

 

In Texas, the last 9 months have been the driest ever recorded. Some areas, lakes are so low, official shut them down. Their warm stagnated³ water is a breeding ground for toxic⁴ algae⁵ and bacteria. Animals are suffering too. Rescuers found these starving in dehydrated. Even the bats which have become a bit of tourist attraction hanging out under this bridge in Austin are so desperate for food, they've started emerging early in the evening. 

 

So, perhaps humans are the only one hoping one force of nature can wash away the lingering effects of another. 

 

For Good morning, America, Ryan Owens ABC News Austin.

1 costliest   

adj.昂贵的( costly的最高级 )；代价高的；引起困难的；造成损失的

参考例句：

• At 81 billion dollars, Katrina is the costliest natural disaster in American history. “卡特里娜”飓风造成了近810亿美圆的损失，是美国历史上最严重的自然灾难之一。 来自互联网
• Senator John Kerry has proposed a tax on the costliest health plans sold by insurance companies. 参议员约翰？克里(JohnKerry)已经提议对保险公司销售的高价值的保险计划征税。 来自互联网

2 awfully   

adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地

参考例句：

• Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
• I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。

3 stagnated   

v.停滞，不流动，不发展( stagnate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The balloting had stagnated, he couldn't win. 投票工作陷于停顿，他不能得胜。 来自辞典例句
• His mind has stagnated since his retirement. 他退休后头脑迟钝了。 来自辞典例句

4 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

5 algae   

n.水藻，海藻

参考例句：

• Most algae live in water.多数藻类生长在水中。
• Algae grow and spread quickly in the lake.湖中水藻滋蔓。