VOA标准英语2010年-On the Scene: Relief Operations at Hai

The Haitian president's front yard is being used as a  landing zone for U.S. Military helicopters that are ferrying Haitian earthquake victims to three U.S. military vessels¹ for treatment.  Suzanne Presto² flew in a Navy Seahawk Thursday from aboard one of those vessels, the U.S. Navy Hospital ship Comfort.  This is what she saw in the minutes after landing. 

We took a helicopter in from aboard the U.S.N.S. Comfort.  Since we got here, the helicopters have been landing non-stop.  This is one of the few moments that it has actually been quiet enough for me to actually voice anything.  People load up people wearing street clothes on stretchers, some of them covered in sheets, some of them with IV bags alongside them on the stretcher. 

Flying in, it's apparent that the presidential palace...the top floor has basically crashed in and the sides are pretty scraped up and worn away.  You can see the concrete.  ((squawking)) We're in the backyard now, where the peacocks and the geese are acting³ as peacocks and geese would.

There are people all along the front of the complex.  There are white cinderblock walls that people are standing⁴ on, and then peering through the green wrought-iron fences. Some of them who are standing on the ground are actually pressing their faces through the legs of other people - whether it's to see what's going on here in the front yard with all the helicopters coming and going or whether it's to have someone who is in the front yard see them - it's difficult to know.    

Flying in over Port-au-Prince, we also flew over the pier⁵ that collapsed⁶ Wednesday morning, in what was a 6.0 or 6.1 earthquake. The tail end of a cargo⁷ truck is dipping in  to the water.

 

1 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 presto   

adv.急速地；n.急板乐段；adj.急板的

参考例句：

• With something so important,you can't just wave a wand and presto!在这么重大的问题上，你想挥动一下指挥棒，转眼就变过来,办不到！
• I just turned the piece of wire in the lock and hey presto,the door opened.我把金属丝伸到锁孔里一拧，嘿，那门就开了。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 pier   

n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱

参考例句：

• The pier of the bridge has been so badly damaged that experts worry it is unable to bear weight.这座桥的桥桩破损厉害，专家担心它已不能负重。
• The ship was making towards the pier.船正驶向码头。

6 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

7 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。