CNN Student News

    FancyEnglish            Island in Crisis              百科知识

       October 6, 2011

　

(CNN Student News) -- October 6, 2011 Island in Crisis AZUZ: Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink. It`s a very real and very serious concern for a pair of islands in the South Pacific, and it`s all because of a La Nina event going on right now. What`s worse here is that experts don`t think this event is going to go away for a while. Guillermo Arduino looks at what led to the current situation and just how bad the problem is. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GUILLERMO ARDUINO, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): A crisis in paradise: two Pacific island nations are running out of water. Tuvalu and Tokelau, surrounded by a turquoise ocean, have declared a state of emergency because they will run out of drinking water in less than two weeks. The islands are about 3,000 kilometers to the north of New Zealand, and about halfway between Australia and Hawaii. Thousands of people here rely solely on rainwater to drink. MARI RAMOS, CNN WEATHER: The rainfall tends to happen usually between November and April, but we`ve had a La Nina here this year. And that has brought drier-than-average conditions. And it really poses a toll on this entire region. ADUINO (voice-over): According to the U.S. Climate Prediction Center, La Nina is expected to strengthen and continue into the beginning of next year. CNN meteorologists do not expect any substantial rain in the near future, but the New Zealand Red Cross is airlifting water containers, tarps and emergency desalination units. Rain is not the only climate challenge on the local islanders` minds. Tuvaluans have also struggled with a sinking of their island due to the rise of seawater levels in the past year. Yet residents are unwilling to leave home, still longing to live a lifestyle that is tranquil but now thirsty -- Guillermo Arduino, CNN, Atlanta. (END VIDEO CLIP)