印度遭遇最强热浪侵袭 --停电九小时 取消客运列车

We'll start in the nation of India.

我们从印度开始说起。

It is not unusual for heat waves to strike in May and June, but the ones that settled over the country last month made it India's third hottest April in 122 years.

五六月遭受热浪侵袭并不罕见，上个月席卷全国的热浪使得印度4月成为122年来的第三热。

What kind of temperatures are we talking about?

我们说的温度是哪种温度?

One hundred four degrees Fahrenheit or higher in the Indian capital.

印度首都的气温为华氏104度或更高。

New Delhi saw seven days in a row of that last month.

上个月，新德里连续7天出现这种高温天气。

And while 104 is near normal in neighboring Pakistan, across India's northwest border, at least two cities there recorded highs of more than 116 degrees Fahrenheit late last week.

尽管在印度西北部边境的邻国巴基斯坦，华氏104度的气温几乎是正常水平，但上周晚些时候那里至少有两个城市的气温高过华氏116度。

A Pakistani government official said it was like a year without a spring and that that hadn't happened for decades.

一位巴基斯坦政府官员说，这就像没有春天的一年，而且这种情况已经几十年没有发生过了。

A significant lack of weather disturbances and thunderstorms throughout April kept temperatures high and rainfall lower than normal.

四月份明显缺乏天气扰动，缺乏雷雨天气，使得气温偏高，雨量低于正常水平。

That's according to the Indian government as reported by the Indian express news company.

这是印度政府通过印度快报公司报道的。

There's been huge demand for electricity as you might imagine and that caused a coal shortage in India.

正如你可能想象的那样，对电力的巨大需求导致了印度短缺煤炭。

Most of the nation's power comes from coal, millions lost electricity for almost nine hours a day and hundreds of passenger train routes were canceled through the end of this month so that more cargo trains could get coal to the country's power stations.

印度这个国家的大部分电力来自煤炭，数百万人每天停电近九个小时，到本月底数百条客运列车线路被取消，以便更多的货运列车能够将煤炭输送到该国的发电站。

Schools were closed in some states, health advisories were issued.

印度多个州的学校关闭，发布了健康建议。

That's how India has dealt with heat waves in the past.

这就是印度过去应对热浪天气的方式。

Residents were told to stay indoors and stay hydrated.

居民们被告知要呆在室内，补充水分。

But not everyone's able to do that.

但并非每个人都能做到这一点。

One Indian official says farmers, construction workers, people who labor outdoors, many of them have had to suffer in the heat.

一名印度官员称，农民、建筑工人和在户外劳动的人，他们中的许多人不得不在高温下受苦。

Crops have been lost and water levels are down.

农作物损失惨重，水位下降。

So, is there any relief in sight?

那么，眼下有什么缓解的迹象吗？

Yes, this week, government forecasters expect high temperatures in northwest India to drop between five and seven degrees on average and by the end of this week, temperatures in Pakistan are predicted to be near where they usually are.

有缓解迹象，政府气象预报员预计，本周印度西北部的高温将平均下降5到7度，到本周末，巴基斯坦的温度将接近往年的水平。

But the start of the monsoon rain season which can bring lasting relief to the region is still at least a month away.

但季风雨季的开始至少还要等一个月的时间，季风雨季可以给该地区高温带来持续的缓解。