Beichuan to rise up on new ground
Source: CCTV.com | 05-04-2009 13:54
Next week marks the one-year anniversary of the earthquake which shook southwestern China on the afternoon of May the 12th, 2008. Today, CCTV International begins a series called "Beyond Survival" on the reconstruction work in the quake zone.
In the opening episode we look at Beichuan County, which was devastated by the earthquake. Conditions were such that it had to be re-built in another place. CCTV reporter Wang Mangmang revisited the old county seat, and also the site where it will rise again.
The road to the valley is alive again. Almost a year ago, the same street was like this.
Now, each step into the county seat still sees what's left from then. But it's spring again, with new signs of life.
This is the first journey back for Liu Yuling's family. They say no on will forget and no one will be forgotten.
Beichuan resident Liu Yuling said, "We're lucky to have survived. Beichuan will always be our home. Even though we move to another place, we'll still keep our memories here. We want a new home, but we'll never forget this place."
The quake destroyed over eighty percent of the houses and not a single building remained safe. Rebuilding on the site is impossible.
One year after the earthquake, we made our way back to the old Beichuan County Seat. The scene here is nearly unchanged from last May, except for the quiet. We're not here today to focus on stories out of the rubble, but to renew your memories and ours. This place is about the past. People who died here will always be remembered. A new Beichuan will rise up in another place, along with reborn hopes."
About twenty kilometers away is the site of the new county seat. An aid team from Shandong Province is the one-on-one supporter of Beichuan County Reconstruction.
Deputy Director Wang Hancheng says public opinion and professional research determined the choice of location. Planning has undergone numerous adjustments and the real work is about to start.
Wang Hancheng, deputy director of Reconstruction Aid Office, Shandong Province,said, "Beichuan's new county seat will be five square kilometers. That's just to start with. We will respect the ethnic traditions of the Qiang people in our reconstruction because they are the masters of this land. We'll concentrate on infrastructure building. Our budget for the new county seat is about five billion yuan."
The new site is relatively flat and geologically safe. Two existing townships and six villages are to be integrated into the new Beichuan County.
Jin Dazhong, magistrate of Beichuan County, Sichuan Province, said, "We will first relocate residents from the new site and then begin reconstruction according to standard procedures and with high quality. Reconstruction will begin in May."
In two years' time, Beichuan and its people will begin their new lives together.
词汇释义:
1.episode n.一段情节, [音]插曲, 插话, 有趣的事件
2.ethnic adj.人种的, 种族的, 异教徒的
3.concentrate on v.集中, 全神贯注于
4.be integrated into 统一到[归并到, 被结合到]...中