2007年VOA标准英语-California Students Learn Emergency Radio, Firs

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
08 March 2007

Students in California are learning emergency skills to help if a disaster strikes their community.  Mike O'Sullivan reports, they are mastering first aid and disaster communications.

 
Tom Baker¹
Tom Baker teaches mathematics and meteorology at Moorpark High School outside Los Angeles.  He also teaches emergency preparations in a course called Radio Amateurs in Disaster Operations.   Students study for their amateur radio license².

"Take out your Morse code sheets, everyone," he says to the students.

They also learn disaster triage and first-aid techniques, taught by a captain from the local fire department.

 
A Moorpark High School student practices communicating with Morse code
Baker says the lessons of Hurricane Katrina, which struck New Orleans and the Gulf³ Coast a year-and-a-half ago, show that people may be on their own after a disaster.

"You have got to have water, you have got to have electricity, some form of a generator⁴, some form of food or medicines, or whatever it is," he notes.  "And you have got to do that all on your own for at least 72 hours.  There is no umbrella of protection waiting for us.  We are on our own."

Student Brandon Sullivan plans to become an emergency medical technician.

"And just help my community, if anything bad happens, all these bird flus and stuff, terrorism, and I just do not want to feel I cannot do anything about it," he says.

Student Chris Darabi says preparation is essential here in California.

"It is an area with a high probability for earthquakes, so I just want to be prepared for anything, any disaster," he notes.

 
Moorpark High School students learn first aid
Stephanie Ross says the class is challenging.

"At first, when you start it, it is kind of confusing, but it comes together," she says.

People in any part of the world are at the mercy of the weather, and at risk of both natural and man-made disasters.

Even on this quiet California campus, student Adam Price says anything could happen.

"You have got earthquakes and natural disasters that could happen at any time, like the bird flu that will hit, probably," he adds.  "But it is just a case of being prepared for anything that could happen, because you never really know what could happen."

 
Jon Jelle
Ventura County Fire Captain Jon Jelle says the class teaches student self-sufficiency.

"This is just kind of a stepping stone to let them know there are things out there in the world that they can do without being told to do so," he says.  "In case of a disaster or emergency, they can go out there and help."

Fires, floods, earthquakes, a bird-flu epidemic⁵ or a terrorist attack - teacher Tom Baker says his students will be ready.

1 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

2 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

3 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

4 generator   

n.发电机，发生器

参考例句：

• All the while the giant generator poured out its power.巨大的发电机一刻不停地发出电力。
• This is an alternating current generator.这是一台交流发电机。

5 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。