奥巴马：风暴影响尚未结束

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.

美国总统奥巴马警告说，正在刚刚开始感受到热带风暴艾琳带来的影响。这次风暴已导致将近20人丧生，财产损失估计达到数十亿美元。奥巴马总统星期天发表讲话，之前为飓风的艾琳经美国东北部向加拿大移动。

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.

虽然艾琳的风力已经减弱，并且已离开了大部分美国城市，但奥巴马总统警告说，美国东海岸地区将继续感受到艾琳的影响。

“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.”

奥巴马说：“很多美国人仍面临停电和洪水的严峻风险，随着河流涨过岸边，未来几天这种影响可能会更加严重。因此我想要人们知道，这一切还没有结束。”

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.

奥巴马总统在白宫玫瑰园发表讲话，站在他身旁的是国土安全部部长珍妮特·纳波利塔诺和联邦紧急事务管理署署长克雷格·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.

他们和其他联邦和州政府官员连日来向奥巴马作了有关这次风暴的简报。奥巴马总统上周五晚间结束度假从麻萨诸塞州返回，比原定时间提前了半天。

President Obama urged patience, noting that assessing and repairing the damage from Irene will take time.

奥巴马总统敦促保持耐心。他指出，评估和修复艾琳造成的损失将需要一些时间。

奥巴马说：“我想强调，未来一段时间我们都将感受到这次风暴带来的影响，修复工作将会持续数周或更长时间。”

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.

艾琳飓风星期六在东南部的北卡罗来纳州登陆，强风和豪雨席卷大西洋沿岸地区，带来了龙卷风、洪水，并刮倒树木。

More than four million homes and businesses lost electricity - from North Carolina to the U.S.-Canada border.

从北卡罗来纳州到美加边界，总共有四百多万户人家和商家断电。

Airports in and around New York City are expected to remain closed until Monday.

预期在星期一之前，纽约市和周边地区的机场仍然关闭。

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.

官员警告说，很可能出现更多的淹水问题，因为飓风带来的雨水流入河里。官员们还说，由于雨水使土壤的含水量达到饱和，因此树木将会不断倒塌。

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.

奥巴马总统表示，他将继续听取有关飓风的简报，并给予州和地方官员所需要的一切协助。奥巴马赞扬紧急工作人员，志愿工作者，以及州和地方政府在飓风来袭时的工作表现。