China: Worst Drought in Living Memory
中国：记忆以来最严重的旱灾
By Wan-Chun Chang, David Lee
【新闻关键字】
1. crops n. 农作物
2. inaccessible adj.难取得的
3. grapple vi.搏斗
4. devastating adj.重创的
5. struggle vi.挣扎
6. cope with ph.对付
Crops are failing and clean drinking water is inaccessible to more than 16 million people as southwest China grapples with a devastating drought.
农作物无法收成，超过1,600万人民无法得到干净的饮用水，中国西南正与重创性的旱灾搏斗着。
More than 50 million people in southwest China are struggling to cope with what is being called the worst drought in living memory.
在中国西南方，超过五千万人正奋战应付着被称为记忆中最严重的旱灾。
Here in the village of, local people are awaiting their only source of drinking water.
在这个村里，当地居民正在等待他们唯一的饮用水来源。
【新闻关键字】
7. cultivate vt. 耕种,耕作
8. plot n.小块土地
9. millet n. 小米
10. shoot n. 幼芽
11. supplement n.补充
12. manual a.手工的
The trucks come every other day or so, bringing only enough to supply drinking water to residents, but not enough for farmers to cultivate their fields.
运水车大约每隔一天来一次，带来仅够供给居民的饮用水，但对于农民农作物的耕作还是不够的。
73 year-old farmer Zhang Zhenlong has given up on his plot of land, which used to produce good crops of millet, beans and corn.
73岁的农夫张清龙已经放弃他的那小块用来生产小米、豆类及玉米的土地。
[Zhang Zhenlong, Farmer]:
“The last time it rained properly was last May. The crops we planted before May all failed. The crops after May produced a little. This year we don’t know what to do, it’s so dry. We have planted, but there are no shoots. Any shoots that come up just die."
农夫张清龙说：“上次下雨大约是在去年五月。五月以前所种植的农作物都枯死了。五月过后生产的农作物也只有一点点收成。今年我们真的不知道该怎么办，太干燥了！我们有播种，但是没有发芽。所有的幼苗刚长出来就都枯死了。”
Villagers in Pubin are faring no better.
浦滨村的状况也没有比较好。
With the year’s first crops failed and no rain in sight, farmers like Wang Fu have been left on their own to try their luck at the spring and summer crops.
随着今年第一季的农作物无法收成，又不见有降雨的迹象，和王富一样农夫只能靠运气期待春季及夏季的农作物收成。
The drought has forced young people to leave the village to supplement their income.
干旱迫使年轻人必须离开家乡去增补收入。
[Wangfu, Farmer]:
“Because the drought has been so serious, young people have all gone to find manual work. There’s nothing to do in the village, so they’ve gone to make a living. Only the old people are left behind."
农夫王富说：“因为干旱很严重，年轻人全都离开去找靠手工的工作。村里没有事情可以做，所以他们出去求生。只有老人家留了下来。”
Some areas have received 90 percent less rainfall than usual for this time of year, and weather forecasters predict that no significant rainfall is expected for at least another 10 days.
有些地区比往常少了90%的降雨量，天气预报员预测未来的10天里，也没有降雨迹象。
本新闻影音出处：新唐人电视台英语新闻
http://english.ntdtv.com/ntdtv_en/ns_china/2010-03-23/874807002966.html
【每日一句】
If you need anything, just call me.
如有任何需要，尽管来电
【今日谚语】
The frog in the well knows nothing of the great ocean.
坐井观天
