VOA标准英语2013--At Least 5 Dead in Texas Fertilizer Plant Explosion

At Least 5 Dead in Texas Fertilizer Plant Explosion

Local firefighters were battling a fire at the plant, shown in amatuer video footage, when the blast suddenly occurred.  An official with the Texas Department of Public Safety says between 50-75 houses near the plant were destroyed, and that many residents were injured.
Erick Perez shot the amateur video. "I was about 200 feet [60.9 metres] from the explosion. We were playing basketball and then they told us to move out, so we moved out to the school and we're sitting there watching the fire, and obviously a big old explosion happened," he said. "And then we hit the deck and ran out of there as fast as we could."
An official with the Waco police department says some firefighters are missing following the explosion.
Many residents of the community were evacuated¹, including a nursing home with over 100 residents.  Emergency crews are still conducting a house-to-house search within the blast area to find anyone who may still be trapped.  Many homes and business had windows blown out and other damage from the force of the blast.
A nearby high school athletic² field was turned into emergency staging area to treat the victims.
Texas Department of Public Safety Official D.L. Wilson says the area looked like a war zone.
"I can tell you I was there. I walked through the blast area, I searched some houses earlier tonight. Massive, just like Iraq, just like the Murray building in Oklahoma City. Same kind of anhydrous exploded," he explained. "So you can imagine what kind of damage we're looking at there."
The Texas Governor's office says state resources have been mobilized to provide assistance to local authorities.  Emergency crews from dozens of nearby towns and counties traveled to West to assist with the response.

1 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

2 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。