Eleven kilometres directly below the city the greatest earthquake of
the 20th century had begun.二十世纪最大的一次地震就在唐山市正下方
11 公里处发生了 。 It was felt in Beijing, which is one hundred
kilometres away. One-third of the nation felt it.100 公里以外的北京市
都感到了地震,全国 1 / 3的地方都有震感。
A huge crack that was eight kilometres long and thirty metres
wide cut across houses, roads and canals.一条8 公里长 30 米宽的巨大
裂缝横穿房舍、马路和渠道。
Steam burst from holes in the ground.地上一些洞穴冒出了蒸气。
Hard hills of rock became rivers of dirt.石头山变成了泥沙河。
In fifteen terrible seconds a large city lay in ruins.在可怕的 15 秒
钟内,一座大城市就沉沦在一片废墟之中。The suffering of the people
was extreme.人们遭受的灾难极为深重。Two-thirds of them died or
were injured during the earthquake.2/3的人在地震中死去或受伤。
Thousands of families were killed and many children were left
without parents. 成 千上 万个 家 庭遇难,许多孩子变成 了 孤儿。 The
number of people who were killed or injured reached more than
400,000.死伤的人数达到40多万。
But how could the survivors believe it was natural?幸存的人们又
怎 么 能相信这是自然现象呢 ? Everywhere they looked nearly
everything was destroyed.人们无论朝哪里看,哪里的一切都几乎被毁了。
All of the city's hospitals,75%of its factories and buildings and 90%
of its homes were gone.所有的市内医院、75%的工厂和建筑物、90%的家
园都消失了。Bricks covered the ground like red autumn leaves. No
wind, however, could blow them away.残砖就像秋天的红叶覆盖着大地,
然而它们是不可能被风刮走的。Two dams fell and most of the bridges
also fell or were not safe for travelling.两座大坝垮了,多数桥梁不是塌
了就是无法安全通行了。The railway tracks were now useless pieces of
steel.铁轨如今成了一条条废钢。
Tens of thousands of cows would never give milk again.好几万头
牛再也挤不出奶来。Half a million pigs and millions of chickens were
dead.50 万 头猪和几 百 万 只 鸡全都死了 。 Sand now filled the wells
instead of water.井里满是沙子,而不是水。People were shocked.人们
惊呆了 Then, later that afternoon, another big quake which was
almost as strong as the first one shook Tangshan.接着,在下午晚些时
候,又一次和第一次一样的强烈的地震震撼着唐山。Some of the rescue
workers and doctors were trapped under the ruins.有些医生和救援人
员被困在废 墟 下 面 。More buildings fell down. Water, food, and
electricity were hard to get.更多的房屋倒塌了。水、电和食物都很难弄到。
People began to wonder how long the disaster would last. 人们
开始纳闷,这场灾难还会持续多久。All hope was not lost.不是所有的希
望都破灭了。Soon after the quakes, the army sent 150,000 soldiers to
Tangshan to help the rescue workers. Hundreds of thousands of