47 墨西哥城设法保护深处水灾的靠山居民（在线收听）

Mexico City Attempts to Protect Squatters

Greg Flakus

Mexico City

19 Jun 2001 02:20 UTC

In Mexico City, authorities are trying to prevent loss of life and property in high-risk areas occupied by 1)squatters. This follows the death of two children on Saturday when a 2)boulder fell on their home.

Storm clouds are gathering over a large part of Mexico and heavy rains are likely to take a large toll on many 3)hillside communities in the coming months. For this reason, Mexico City officials are trying to 4)relocate squatters from some of the riskiest zones, which include hillsides and areas close to 5)ravines that fill with water during heavy rains.

Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador says his government has been hesitant to take action against poor people living in squatter camps, but that something must be done. He says the city government is working little by little to deal with the problem and that nobody wants to see another tragedy in which children die in a landslide.

Mr. Lopez Obrador says the city is trying to persuade squatters to leave some areas through dialogue. The city has offered hundreds of families 6)temporary shelter and rent 7)coupons in an effort to convince them to move. So far only about 100 families have agreed to move from the risky areas. Mr. Lopez Obrador says, as an ultimate measure, force, may be necessary to remove families from dangerous home sites.

There are hundreds of thousands of people living in squatter camps all around Mexico City. In many cases, they have cut trees from hillsides thereby increasing the danger of flash floods and soil 8)erosion. Social workers say most of these people have no other place to live. As the city's population has grown past 18 million 9)inhabitants, housing has become scarce and even land that can be used for squatter huts is hard to come by.

In the accident Saturday, a boulder of about two meters in diameter slipped from a muddy hillside 10)perch and fell on a small shack, killing two boys, ages one and seven. The hill is part of a protected area where building was prohibited, but, as often happens here in Mexico, poor people have invaded the area and built 11)shacks all over the hill and in the nearby ravine. As the rainy season intensifies, authorities are worried that more such 12)landslides will come and more 13)tragedies will occur.

(1)      squatter[5skwRtE(r)]n.蹲着的人vi.涉水而过

(2)      boulder[`bEJldE(r)]n.大石头, 漂石

(3)      hillside[`hIlsaId]n.山坡, 山腹

(4)      relocate[ri:lEJ5keIt; (?@) ri:lEJkeIt]v.重新部署

(5)      ravine[rE5vi:n]n.沟壑, 峡谷, 溪谷

(6)      temporary[5tempErErI; (?@) -pErerI]adj.暂时的, 临时的, 临时性

(7)      coupon[5ku:pRn]n.息票, 商家的优待券

(8)      erosion[I5rEJV(E)n].腐蚀, 侵蚀

(9)      inhabitant[In5hAbItEnt]n.居民, 居住者

(10)      perch[p:tF]n.栖木, 人所居的高位v.(使)栖息, 就位, 位于

(11)      shack[FAk]n.小室

(12)      landslide[5lAndslaId]n.[地]山崩, 崩塌的泥石

(13)      tragedy[5trAdVIdI]n.悲剧, 惨案, 悲惨, 灾难