BBC对于中国地震的报道（附雅思核心词汇讲解）

Search for China quake survivors

12:33 GMT, Tuesday, 13 May 2008 13:33 UK

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7397489.stm

A girl is rescued from the rubble of Juyuan school in Dujiangyan

生词

rubble n. 碎石，瓦砾

A massive search and rescue operation is under way in south-western China after one of the most powerful earthquakes in decades.

生词（红色为雅思核心词汇）

massive adj. happens on a very large scale and over a very wide area大规模的 e.g. The earthquake in China has become the subject of massive media coverage. 中国的地震已经成为了大量媒体报道的对象。

under way phr. if an activity or plan is under way, it has begun and is now taking place 正在进行中的 同义替换：in progress e.g. The reconstruction of the city is underway. 这个城市的重建正在进行中。

Troops have arrived in Wenchuan county at the epicentre, which was largely cut off by the quake - but heavy rain is hampering rescue operations.

Elsewhere in Sichuan province, frantic efforts are being made to reach thousands of people under the rubble.

The death toll is now more than 12,000, officials say, and looks set to rise. 

生词（红色为雅思核心词汇）

troop n. 军队 同义替换：armed forces, the army, soldiers

epicentre n. 震中 其它含义：中心，集中点，中枢 e.g the epicentre of national power 国家权力的中心

hamper v. if you hamper a person or their actions, you restrict them by making their development, progress or movement difficult 妨碍，阻碍，牵制  同义替换：impede, hinder, inhibit（以上均为高分写作词汇）,hold back, restrict, restrain

frantic adj. if an activity is frantic, things are done hurriedly and in an energetic but disorganised way 匆忙混乱的 其它含义：发狂似的 e.g. frantic activity 忙乱的活动 the frantic pace of modern life 现代生活紧张急速的节奏 They made a frantic research for the lost child.他们紧张万分地拼命寻找那走失的孩子。

death toll n. (=toll) （事故等的）伤亡人数 e.g. The daily death toll fell to an average of 20. 死亡人数下降到日平均五十人。

be set to phr. 很有可能的，即将发生的 e.g. Electricity prices are set to go up again. 电价很有可能再一次上涨。

  Chaotic yet organised rescue effort

 

In one city, Mianyang, near the epicentre, more than 18,000 people are said to be buried under the rubble and 3,629 have been confirmed dead, state news agency Xinhua reports.

In the nearby town of Mianzhu, at least 4,800 people are trapped under the rubble and massive landslides have buried roads to outlying villages, Xinhua says.

Premier Wen Jiabao was quick to reach the scene and urged rescuers to clear roads into the worst-hit areas as fast as possible.

"As long as there is even a little hope, we will redouble our efforts 100 times and will never relax our efforts," he told crying locals in the badly hit Dujiangyan city, south-east of the epicentre.

The health ministry has made an urgent appeal for people to give blood to help the injured.

 

 

The BBC's Michael Bristow describes a scene of organised chaos in Dujiangyan - with dazed survivors in the streets in their pyjamas while police try to direct traffic.

He heard the story of one man whose uncle was trapped in the rubble of his apartment building. He was able to speak to him on his mobile phone, but could not reach him and was desperately searching for help.

Cries for help

The quake - now upgraded to 7.9 magnitude - struck on Monday at 1428 local time (0628 GMT) and was felt as far away as Beijing and the Thai capital, Bangkok.

Strong aftershocks continued to shake the region on Tuesday - keeping nervous survivors from returning to their homes. 

地震场景词汇（红色为雅思核心词汇）

magnitude n. 震级 e.g. The quake had an magnitude of 7.9. 地震的震级为7.9级。

strike (strike-stuck-struck或stricken) v. If an illness, disaster, etc strikes, it has a sudden harmful effect on a person or an area （疾病或灾祸等）侵袭 e.g. When natural disaster strikes, what is needed is sympathy and practical aid. 当自然灾害发生的时候，人们需要的是同情和实际的援助。

aftershock n. 余震

The earthquake destroyed many roads

Boulders and landslides are blocking roads in the worst-hit areas and helicopters have been unable to land because of the bad weather.

Beijing has deployed 50,000 troops to help with relief efforts, but they have not yet all arrived.

About 1,300 rescue troops and medics have reached Wenchuan county and immediately started searching for survivors and treating the injured, Xinhua reported.

There is no word yet on casualty figures there. Previously the only contact with the area was when a senior government official appealed for outside help using a satellite phone.

Across the region, schools, hospitals and chemical plants were all reported to have been affected. 

生词（红色为雅思核心词汇）

boulder n. a big rounded rock 大圆石

deploy v. When a country deploys troops, resources, or equipment, it organises them so that they are in a position or condition where they can be used immediately 部署；调度

relief n. money, food, or clothing that is provided, often from public funds, for people who are very poor or hungry. 救济，救济金，救济品 e.g. Relief efforts are being made in the quake-hit areas. 人们正在努力救济地震灾区。

medic n. informal a doctor or medial student  [非正式] 医生，医科学生

casualty n. a person who has been killed or injured in a war, accident, or disaster 伤亡者 同义替换：victim

 

There were harrowing reports from the scene of a school collapse in Dujiangyan city, where 900 students were buried and at least 50 killed.

Teenagers buried beneath the rubble of the three-storey Juyuan Middle School building struggled to break free, while others cried out for help.

In Beichuan county, some 80% of buildings were reported to have been destroyed.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people were reported to have been buried in two collapsed chemical plants in Shifang in Sichuan.

Open response

More than 150 people were killed in the provinces of Gansu and Shaanxi, and in Chongqing municipality, Xinhua said.

And there are fears for the safety of staff, tourists - including a group of 15 British visitors - and the panda population at a giant panda research centre at Wolong in Wenchuan, which has not yet been contacted.

But 60 pandas at another breeding centre - in Chengdu - are reportedly safe.

高分词汇（红色为雅思核心词汇）

harrowing adj. a situation or event that is harrowing is very upsetting or disturbing 折磨人的；令人苦恼的；烦人的 同义替换：distressing ，traumatic, heartbreaking, painful e.g. a harrowing story/ film/ experience 一个痛苦的故事/电影, 一次痛苦的经历

reportedly adv. formal  if sth. is reportedly true, it is said to be true [正式]据报道，据传说 （本词为写作高分词汇）同义替换：it is reported that…, it is said that… e.g. The conference is reportedly to be convened on June 5. 据报道，会议将于6月5日召开。

 

 

China's Olympic Games organisers say they will scale down the route of the torch through the country and there will be a minute's silence when the next leg starts in the south-eastern city of Ruijin on Wednesday.

US President George W Bush expressed condolences to victims' families, while the US, UK, the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan reportedly offered aid.

China said it would accept international help to cope with the quake - the worst since 1976 when 242,000 people were killed in Tangshan - and offered its thanks.

The government response was praised as "swift and very efficient" by Francis Marcus of the International Federation of the Red Cross in Beijing.

But he added the scale of the disaster was such that "we can't expect that the government can do everything and handle every aspect of the needs".

The BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Beijing says this is one of the most open and speedy responses to an emergency he has ever seen from Chinese state media.

The fact the quake was felt in Beijing, he says, means millions of people will feel connected to the disaster and will be watching TV screens closely to see how the government responds.

 

生词（红色为雅思核心词汇）

scale down phr. v. if sth. is scaled down, it has been made smaller in size, amount, or extent than it used to be, although it has the same proportions that it had before （按比例）缩小，缩减 e.g. a scale-down version 缩小的版本 Import will have to be scaled down until exports begin to rise again. 在出口额回升之前，进口额必须相应缩减。

leg n. In some sports, e.g. in darts and matches, relay races, and some football competitions, a leg is a part of a game, a part of a race, or one game of a pair or series of games. （体育比赛，尤指接力赛跑中的）一段赛程

condolence n. sympathy for sth. that has happened to someone, especially the death of a friend or relative 慰问，尤指吊唁。 （常用复数） e.g. letters of condolence 吊唁信 express/offer one’s condolences over the death of sb. 对某人的去世表示哀悼

cope with phr. v.  If you cope with an unpleasant situation, you accept it or endure it. 应付（不快的局面） 同义替换：deal with, handle, get through, address e.g. Every Chinese should try to cope with the earthquake. 每个中国人都应该设法应付这场地震。

handle v. if you handle a problem, situation, or sth. that you find difficult to accept, you deal with it successfully 应付（成功地）处理 同义替换cope with, deal with, address e.g. The prediction of earthquakes is an issue too difficult for us to handle. 地震的预测是个很棘手的问题，我们解决不了。

speedy adj. a speedy action happens or is done very quickly. 快的，迅速的 同义替换: quick, rapid, prompt（全部为雅思高频词汇） e.g. It is our hope that the government will be capable of speedier, more accurate prediction of earthquakes. 我们希望政府能够对地震做出更快、更准确的预测。