“災難性”的野火繼續(xù)在澳大利亞肆虐

“災難性”的野火繼續(xù)在澳大利亞肆虐

A large portion of Australia is on fire after weeks of extreme heat, strong winds and drought that have created ideal conditions for hundreds of bushfires to thrive across the country. Several fires have been burning since November, particularly in the eastern state of New South Wales.

經過數周的高溫、強風和干旱，澳大利亞大部分地區(qū)都著火了，這為全國各地數百處叢林大火的蔓延創(chuàng)造了理想條件。自11月以來，已經發(fā)生了幾起火災，特別是在東部的新南威爾士州。

The fires threaten many of Australia's largest population centers, including Sydney, a city of more than 5 million, which has been cloaked in smoke. Blazes have destroyed hundreds of homes and almost 3 million acres of bushland, threatening the habitat of countless wildlife, including already endangered koalas.

大火威脅著澳大利亞許多最大的人口中心，包括擁有500多萬人口的悉尼，這座城市一直籠罩在煙霧中。大火摧毀了數百座房屋和近300萬英畝的叢林，威脅著無數野生動物的棲息地，包括已經瀕臨滅絕的考拉。

The fires come after years of drought in parts of the country and record-breaking heat. Earlier this week, Australia had its hottest day on record — only to break that record the following day. And fire season has just begun, leaving many bracing for worse.

火災發(fā)生前，該國部分地區(qū)經歷了多年的干旱和創(chuàng)紀錄的高溫。本周早些時候，澳大利亞經歷了有記錄以來最熱的一天，但第二天就打破了記錄?；馂募竟?jié)才剛剛開始，許多人還在為更糟糕的情況做準備。

Thousands of firefighters, many of whom are volunteers, are currently deployed. Several have been injured, and two died earlier this week when a fallen tree limb overturned their vehicle. Their deaths prompted Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to return early from a family vacation to Hawaii.

成千上萬的消防員，其中許多是志愿者，目前已經被部署。本周早些時候，一根倒下的樹枝掀翻了他們的車，造成數人受傷，兩人死亡。他們的死亡促使澳大利亞總理斯科特·莫里森提前結束了與家人一起去夏威夷的假期，提前回國。

"I deeply regret any offence caused to any of the many Australians affected by the terrible bushfires by my taking leave with family at this time," Morrison said in a statement released Friday. Morrison was scrutinized for his unwillingness to link Australia's greenhouse gas emissions to extreme fire conditions last month.

莫里森在周五發(fā)表的一份聲明中說:“我對自己在這個時候和家人一起離開，給許多受森林大火影響的澳大利亞人造成的傷害深感遺憾。”莫里森曾因不愿將澳大利亞的溫室氣體排放與上月的極端火災狀況聯系起來而受到審查。

The prime minister's return coincides with a new state of emergency issued for New South Wales, the country's most populous state, as "catastrophic" fire conditions were listed for the region, the highest fire danger rating possible in the country. Andrea Peace, a meteorologist for Australia's Bureau of Meteorology, said that Saturday could be the worst day for the area, as a front moves in from the south.

總理的回歸恰逢新南威爾士州發(fā)布新的緊急狀態(tài)，該州是全國人口最多的州，該地區(qū)被列為“災難性”火災狀態(tài)，是全國最高的火災危險等級。澳大利亞氣象局的氣象學家安德里亞皮斯說，隨著一個鋒從南部移動過來，周六可能是該地區(qū)最糟糕的一天。

"What it's going to do is bring quite a strong, gusty southerly wind ... (which) creates a really dangerous period for the fire grounds because it rapidly changes the directions of the fires there," Peace said.

“它會帶來一股強勁的南風……這為火災發(fā)生創(chuàng)造了一個非常危險的時期，因為它迅速改變了火災的方向。”

She said there could be gusts of up to 100 kilometers per hour, or about 62 miles per hour.

她說，陣風可能高達每小時100公里，或大約每小時62英里。

Julia Holman, a reporter for Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Sydney, told NPR's David Greene earlier this week that the fires are already overwhelming the area.

澳大利亞廣播公司駐悉尼記者茱莉亞·霍爾曼本周早些時候告訴NPR新聞的大衛(wèi)·格林，火災已經席卷了該地區(qū)。

"New South Wales is an enormous state. It's bigger than the size of Texas. And the fires literally go from the top of the state right down to the bottom," Holman said.

“新南威爾士州是個大州。它比德克薩斯州的面積還大。火災從州的頂部一直蔓延到底部，”霍爾曼說。

She said fires are very common in Australia, but not like this. "The problem is that it's so dry that we cannot put out these fires. And that's what's different this time around," she said.

她說火災在澳大利亞很常見，但不是像這樣。“問題是(空氣)太干了，我們無法撲滅這些大火。這就是這次的不同之處。”

"These fires are also in very dense bushland. They cannot be put out by human effort," Holman continued. "We're waiting for rain. But we're in the midst of the worst drought on record here in New South Wales. So there is no possible way that these fires can be put out no matter the enormous human effort that is going into it."

“這些火災也發(fā)生在非常密集的叢林地帶。它們無法通過人類的努力消除，”霍爾曼繼續(xù)說道。“我們在等雨。但在新南威爾士州，我們正處于有記錄以來最嚴重的干旱之中。因此，無論人類付出多大的努力，都不可能撲滅這些大火。”