China floods: Nearly 2 million displaced in Shanxi province
BBC
More than 1.76 million people have been affected by severe flooding in China's northern Shanxi province, according to local media.
Torrential rain last week lead to houses collapsing and triggered landslides across more than 70 districts and cities in the province.
Heavy rainfall is hampering rescue efforts, officials said.
The flooding comes less than three months after extreme rains in Henan province left more than 300 dead.
China's Meteorological Administration also told local media that heavy and prolonged rainfall and storms are hampering rescue efforts.
Shanxi is also home to a number of ancient monuments which are at major risk from the severe rainfall.
Authorities told the Xinhua news agency that more than 120,000 people have been urgently transferred and resettled, and that 17,000 homes have collapsed across Shanxi province.
Four police officers have died as a result of a landslide, according to the state-run Global Times, although information about other casualties has not been released.
It added that the Shanxi flooding may have been worse than the floods in Henan earlier this year.
Shanxi's provincial capital Taiyuan saw average rainfall of around 185.6mm last week, compared with 25mm it saw in October between 1981 and 2010.
Rescuers in Taiyuan reportedly used megaphones to tell stranded people: "Hold the children above your head, the elderly and women are given priority to go ashore. Don't panic, everyone will be rescued."
Shanxi is a major coal producing province and it was forced to halt operations at mines and chemical factories as a result of the rain.
China is already facing an energy shortage which has caused power cuts.
The local government said it has suspended output at 60 coal mines, 372 non-coal mines and 14 dangerous chemical factories in the province.
Operations had already been stopped at 27 other coal mines on October 4th.
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词汇：
1.torrential
torrential /təˈrenʃl/表示“（雨）倾泻似的，如注的”，英文解释为“used to refer to very heavy rain”，如：torrential rain 倾盆大雨，a torrential downpour/storm 如注的大雨/暴风雨。
2. hamper
表示“阻碍，妨碍”，英文解释为“to prevent someone doing something easily”举个🌰：
Fierce storms have been hampering rescue efforts.
猛烈的暴风雨妨碍了救援工作的进行。
🎬电影《降临》（Arrival）中的台词提到：Trying to answer this in any meaningful way is hampered by the fact that... 试图从任何有意义的角度来回答 都困难重重，
3. prolonged
表示“延续很久的，长期的”，英文解释为“continuing for a long time”举个🌰：
Prolonged use of the drug is known to have harmful side-effects.
据了解，长期服用此药会产生对人体有害的副作用。
4.monument
1）表示“纪念碑（或馆、堂、像等）”，英文解释为“a building, column, statue, etc. built to remind people of a famous person or event”举个🌰：
A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral.
在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
2）表示“历史遗迹；有历史价值的建筑”，英文解释为“a building that has special historical importance”，如：an ancient monument 古迹。
3）表示“丰碑；永久的典范”，英文解释为“a thing that remains as a good example of sb's qualities or of what they did”举个🌰：
These recordings are a monument to his talent as a pianist.
这些录音是展现他钢琴家才华的不朽之作。
5. stranded
表示“（因缺乏交通工具、金钱等）滞留的，被困住的”，英文解释为“unable to leave somewhere because of a problem such as not having any transport or money”举个🌰：
He left me stranded in town with no car and no money for a bus.
他把我丢在城里，既没车也没钱坐公交车。
ashore
ashore /əˈʃɔː(r)/ 作副词，表示“向岸，向陆地；上岸，上陆地”，英文解释为“towards or onto land from an area of water”举个🌰：
We swam ashore.
我们向岸上游去。
6. halt
1）表示“使停住；停住”，英文解释为“When a person or a vehicle halts or when something halts them, they stop moving in the direction they were going and stand still.”举个🌰：
They halted at a short distance from the house.
他们停在离房子不远处。
2）表示“使完全停止；完全停止”，英文解释为“When something such as growth, development, or activity halts or when you halt it, it stops completely.”举个🌰：
Workers halted production at the auto plant yesterday.
昨天，汽车厂的工人完全停止了生产。
🎬电影《危情时速》（Unstoppable）中的台词提到：Emergency responders want to halt all activity near the line应急响应人员打算停止铁路附近的所有活动。
