CNN 2011-09-06

 It is almost here. Hurricane Irene is curving closer and closer to tens of millions of people. Waves and wind already kicking up, and the first rains will soak the Southeast today. This is a big storm, hundreds of miles across. And even from space, it is a monster. An astronaut on the International Space Station called the view "terrifying."

 

And we've got crews deployed¹ up and down the East Coast. We will hear from Reynolds Wolf is in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. John Zarrella is a little south of there in Atlantic Beach. Susan Candiotti reports from Fire Island, New York. Mary Snow is in New York City. And here in the hurricane headquarters, Jacqui Jeras.

 

Let's start with Reynolds Wolf in the North Carolina's outer banks.

 

Reynolds, they are bracing² for a direct hit, aren't they?

 

They certainly are. You know, one of the most troubling things about this area is just the really the area itself and how it's susceptible³ to these tropical systems. When you think about the outer banks of North Carolina, first of all, you have to think about the water offshore⁴. We've got a couple of things coming into play. First and foremost, to our south, we got a current that we refer to as the gulf⁵ stream. That works its way to the north.

 

And then a few fingers, of the Labrador current, that's the colder current, it comes in from the north and you have them converge⁶ right off Cape⁷ Hatteras.

 

Now, what happens, you also have a bunch of navigational hazards right offshore. They refer to this as the graveyard⁸ of the Atlantic. Then you have outer banks themselves, Jim. The outer banks are just a ribbon of about 200 miles worth of sand, the widest point being about three miles and it's not really that high above sea level. In fact, in some places, it's only seven to 11 feet at its highest points along these barrier islands.

 

So, when you think about a big tropical system, a hurricane, a category two, maybe a category three with a storm surge of anywhere from, say, seven, eight, nine, 10, even 11, 12 feet, you can see how dangerous things get. Because the possibility of the storm coming closer. Irene looks like it has a beat on the outer banks. They have had some evacuations.

 

Many people began evacuating⁹ earlier in the week. They had the official evacuation for visitors on the island. They average about 150,000 on just a summer day in August.

 

Then have you people that live along this barrier island year- round, some 35,000. Those evacuations are going to take place today as of 8:00. They're doing it again. If people are going, here is what's interesting, though. They call it mandatory¹⁰ but there are people that will be staying here.

 

And I got to tell you, one person has lived on these islands for the last 30 years and Bobby Outten, who works for the Dare County Management Office, he already laid out what he considers to be his nightmare scenario¹¹.

1 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

2 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

3 susceptible   

adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的

参考例句：

• Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
• We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。

4 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

5 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。

6 converge   

vi.会合；聚集，集中；(思想、观点等)趋近

参考例句：

• The results converge towards this truth.其结果趋近于这个真理。
• Parallel lines converge at infinity.平行线永不相交。

7 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

8 graveyard   

n.坟场

参考例句：

• All the town was drifting toward the graveyard.全镇的人都象流水似地向那坟场涌过去。
• Living next to a graveyard would give me the creeps.居住在墓地旁边会使我毛骨悚然。

9 evacuating   

撤离，疏散( evacuate的现在分词 )； 排空（胃肠），排泄（粪便）； （从危险的地方）撤出，搬出，撤空

参考例句：

• The solution is degassed by alternately freezing, evacuating and thawing. 通过交替的冻结、抽空和溶化来使溶液除气。
• Are we evacuating these potential targets? 能够在这些目标地域内进行疏散吗？

10 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

11 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。