奧巴馬：風暴影響尚未結束
U.S. President Barack Obama is warning that the impact of Tropical Storm Irene is just beginning to be felt. Nearly 20 lives have been lost, and property damage has been estimated in the billions of dollars. The president spoke Sunday as the former hurricane moved through the Northeastern United States toward Canada.
美國總統奧巴馬警告說，正在剛剛開始感受到熱帶風暴艾琳帶來的影響。這次風暴已導致將近20人喪生，財產損失估計達到數十億美元。奧巴馬總統星期天發表講話，之前爲颶風的艾琳經美國東北部向加拿大移動。
Although Irene has weakened and left some of America’s biggest cities, President Obama cautioned that the U.S. East Coast will continue to feel its effects.
雖然艾琳的風力已經減弱，並且已離開了大部分美國城市，但奧巴馬總統警告說，美國東海岸地區將繼續感受到艾琳的影響。
“Many Americans are still at serious risk of power outages and flooding, which could get worse in the coming days as rivers swell past their banks," he said. "So I want people to understand that this is not over.”
奧巴馬說：“很多美國人仍面臨停電和洪水的嚴峻風險，隨着河流漲過岸邊，未來幾天這種影響可能會更加嚴重。因此我想要人們知道，這一切還沒有結束。”
The president spoke in the White House Rose Garden, with Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Craig Fugate at his side.
奧巴馬總統在白宮玫瑰園發表講話，站在他身旁的是國土安全部部長珍妮特·納波利塔諾和聯邦緊急事務管理署署長克雷格·福格特。
They and other national and state government officials have been briefing Mr. Obama about the storm for several days. The president returned to Washington on Friday night from his vacation in Massachusetts, about a half-day earlier than scheduled.
他們和其他聯邦和州政府官員連日來向奧巴馬作了有關這次風暴的簡報。奧巴馬總統上週五晚間結束度假從麻薩諸塞州返回，比原定時間提前了半天。
President Obama urged patience, noting that assessing and repairing the damage from Irene will take time.
奧巴馬總統敦促保持耐心。他指出，評估和修復艾琳造成的損失將需要一些時間。“I do want to underscore that the impacts of this storm will be felt for some time, and the recovery effort will last for weeks or longer,” he said.
奧巴馬說：“我想強調，未來一段時間我們都將感受到這次風暴帶來的影響，修復工作將會持續數週或更長時間。”
The storm made landfall in the southeastern state of North Carolina on Saturday, blasting the Atlantic coast with high winds and heavy rain, and causing tornadoes, flooding and falling trees.
艾琳颶風星期六在東南部的北卡羅來納州登陸，強風和豪雨席捲大西洋沿岸地區，帶來了龍捲風、洪水，並颳倒樹木。
More than four million homes and businesses lost electricity - from North Carolina to the U.S.-Canada border.
從北卡羅來納州到美加邊界，總共有四百多萬戶人家和商家斷電。
Airports in and around New York City are expected to remain closed until Monday.
預期在星期一之前，紐約市和周邊地區的機場仍然關閉。
Officials warn that further flooding is likely, as water from the storm moves into rivers. They also say that trees will continue to fall due to the rain-saturated soil.
官員警告說，很可能出現更多的淹水問題，因爲颶風帶來的雨水流入河裏。官員們還說，由於雨水使土壤的含水量達到飽和，因此樹木將會不斷倒塌。
President Obama said he will continue to receive briefings on the situation, and will give state and local officials all of the help they need. He praised emergency workers, volunteers and state and local governments for their work during the storm.
奧巴馬總統表示，他將繼續聽取有關颶風的簡報，並給予州和地方官員所需要的一切協助。奧巴馬讚揚緊急工作人員，志願工作者，以及州和地方政府在颶風來襲時的工作表現。
