Scientists say rising temperatures on Earth's surface are to blame for rising sea levels. The reality of rising sea levels means many coastal and island communities are at risk when a tsunami strikes. The island state of Hawaii is taking steps to prepare for tsunami waves. Officials there want to be ready if such an event takes place.
科学家表示，海平面上升归咎于地球表面温度不断上升。海平面上升这一事实意味着当海啸来袭时，很多沿海和岛上的社区都处于危险之中。夏威夷州正在采取措施为海啸做准备。当地官员希望做好发生这类事件的准备。
In 2011, a strong earthquake struck northeastern Japan. The quake caused a tsunami. The huge waves damaged several nuclear reactors in the area. Those events led Hawaiian officials to reconsider their plan of action for dealing with a tsunami.
2011年一次强大地震袭击了日本东北部。这次地震引发了海啸。惊天巨浪破坏了该地区的数个核反应堆。这些事件促使夏威夷官员重新考虑他们应对海啸的行动方案。
Scientists and emergency officials in the state are now preparing for an extreme tsunami -- the kind that comes every 500 to 1,000 years.
科学家和该州的紧急事务官员现在正在为500年到一千年一遇的极端海啸做准备。
Almost 19,000 people died when the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan four years ago. Scientists say the Hawaiian Islands may be just as helpless if such a disaster were to take place there.
四年前地震和海啸袭击日本导致了近1.9万人遇难。科学家表示，如果夏威夷发生这类灾难也会同样无助。
Rhett Butler is a researcher at the University of Hawaii. He says a mysterious hole on the island of Kauai has evidence that a huge tsunami hit Hawaii 500 years ago. David Burney discovered the evidence. He found remains of old shells, coral and other sea creatures in a cave about 100 meters from the ocean.
瑞德·巴特勒（Rhett Butler）是夏威夷大学的一名研究员。他说，考艾岛上的一个神秘洞穴存在证据可以证实500年前有一次巨大海啸袭击了夏威夷。大卫·伯尼（David Burney）发现了这些证据。他在距离海洋100米左右的一个山洞里发现了旧贝壳、珊瑚和其它海洋生物的遗骸。
Civil defense agencies keep people prepared by testing their tsunami warning system.
民防机构通过测试他们的海啸预警系统让人们做好准备。
Scientists say a major tsunami could happen again. They warn that if a powerful earthquake struck the Aleutian Islands in the northern Pacific, a super tsunami could follow.
科学家表示可能会再次发生严重海啸。他们警告说，如果强大地震袭击北太平洋的阿留申群岛，就会引发一场超级海啸。
A researcher at the University of Hawaii created a computer model to show what would happen if an earthquake struck the Aleutians and produced a tsunami. The model showed the waves from a major quake could move further inland across Hawaii than officials thought, deep into areas considered safe.
夏威夷大学的一位研究人员创建了一个计算机模型，可以显示出地震袭击阿留申群岛并引发海啸后会发生什么。该模型显示，大地震的地震波可能比官员们认为的更加深入夏威夷内陆，进入大家所认为的安全地区。
The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency works with local governments to create disaster plans. Kevin Richards is an emergency planner with the agency. He says before the computer model, Hawaiian officials thought they would only have to evacuate 85,000 people from the island of Oahu.
夏威夷紧急事务管理署同当地政府合作建立灾难计划。凯文·理查兹（Kevin Richards）是该机构的紧急事务策划。他说，在计算机模型之前，夏威夷官员认为他们只需要从瓦胡岛疏散8.5万人。
"If this event took place, we'd have to move 340 and 350,000 people to safety -- a much more daunting task. And safety is not in the same place any more. It's much further away, it's further up the hill -- it's further inland."
他说，“如果发生这种事件，我们必须将三十四五万人转移到安全地区，这是一项更加艰巨的任务。而且安全地区也不同以往，它更加遥远，更加靠近山顶，更加深入内陆。”
Some Hawaiians could drive to higher ground. But driving is not possible in some parts of Hawaii. So people would have to walk to safety or go to the fourth floor or higher of a reinforced concrete building.
一些夏威夷人可以开车到地势较高的地方。但是在夏威夷的一些地区没法驾驶。所以人们需要步行到安全地区，或上到钢筋混泥土建筑的四楼或更高。”
Officials are now developing a new plan of action, with an extended evacuation zone for an extreme tsunami. Scientist Rhett Butler says because of what happened in Japan in 2011, people take the threat seriously.
官员们正在制定一项新的行动计划扩大极端海啸的疏散区。科学家巴特勒表示，由于2011年日本所发生的事情，人们开始认真对待威胁。
"It doesn't mean it's gonna happen in our time. It doesn't mean it's gonna happen this year or next year. But it's just the nature of the tectonic forces on our planet. They just keep marchin(g) along, and once you relieve all these stresses with these truly great earthquakes, the water responds."
他说，“这并不意味着我们这个时代会发生海啸，不意味着今年或明年会发生。它只是地球上构造作用力的本质。它们不停地作用，一旦所有这些压力通过大地震缓解，就会发生海啸。”
I'm Christopher Cruise.
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