紅色表示重點詞彙

藍色表示句子主幹

帶著問題聽講解

Q1: 你能總結出多少和“火”相關的單詞和表達？

Q2: “inferno”和“hell”有什麼區別？

Q3: 加州大火頻發和人類的行為有何聯絡？

The new abnormal: California faces the most destructive fire in its history

Part of northern California had become an inferno. A nearby town, Paradise, was incinerated and reduced to ash. Nearly 50 people are confirmed dead and over 200 missing. Six of the ten most destructive fires in California’s history have occurred in the past decade. Last year was the most destructive year on record, until this year. Why is the Golden State so flammable? 

There are three reasons why California has been besieged by flames. First, the climate is becoming warmer. This has led to snow melting earlier, drier landscapes and a longer season when fires are likely to ignite. “This is not the new normal. This is the new abnormal,” Jerry Brown, the state’s governor, said recently. 

A second reason is that more people live in combustible places. Since 1990 60% of new homes in California, Washington and Oregon have been built in spaces abutting nature. These areas, which environmentalists call the “wildland-urban interface”, are at higher risk of wildfire.

A third reason is that there is more fuel. Before western settlers arrived, fires used to happen often and naturally, which made less fuel available for future fires. For the past century fires have tended to be quickly suppressed. This has led to a build-up of dry brush, and makes the average wildfire much likelier to turn into a raging mega-fire.

Putting out the blazes is the most immediate task for California, but not the last. Many survivors will want to rebuild their homes exactly where they were. Californians will also want to ensure that utility companies are acting and investing responsibly. Investigations into what caused the fire are still going on, but some reports suggest it may have begun with sparks from lines owned by an electricity company. 

“新的反常態”：加州面臨史上最嚴重大火

加州北部部分地區已成人間煉獄。其附近的天堂鎮已被焚燬並化為灰燼。將近 50 人被證實死亡，200 多人失蹤。加州歷史上十個最具破壞性的火災中，有六個發生在過去的十年裡。去年曾是有記錄以來最嚴重的一年，而今年又破紀錄了。為什麼“金州”如此易燃呢？

加州總被大火圍困的原因有三。首先，氣候正在變暖。這導致了積雪融化得更早，地貌變得乾旱，且易燃季節延長。加州州長傑瑞·布朗最近說：“這不是新常態，而是新的反常態。”

第二個原因是有更多的人生活在容易著火的地區。自 1990 年以來，加州、華盛頓州和俄勒岡州 60%的新住宅都建在大自然的周邊地區。這些被環保主義者稱為“荒地與城市的交界處”的區域，面臨著更高的野火風險。

第三個原因是燃料更多。在西方殖民者到來之前，火災往往自然發生，這就減少了未來火災的所需燃料。而在過去一個世紀裡，火勢一般很快得到控制。這導致了幹灌木叢的堆積，使得尋常野火更有可能變成燎原的熊熊烈火。

撲滅大火是加州最緊迫的任務，但絕不是最後一項。許多幸存者希望能在原址重建他們的家園。加州人還希望確保公用事業公司以負責任的方式行事和投資。對火災原因的調查仍在繼續，但一些報道表明，火災可能是由一家電力公司旗下的線路產生的電火花引發的。