中國南方洪災 上演救豬總動員

Amid Floods in China, Stranded Pigs Are Thrown a Lifeline

中國南方洪災，上演“救豬總動員”

BEIJING — The floods battering southern China are a deadly menace. Sustained heavy rains have killed at least 128 people so far, and hundreds of thousands have moved from vulnerable areas. And the destructive weather is likely to continue.

北京——中國南方遭受洪水襲擊，造成人員傷亡。迄今爲止，持續的暴雨已經造成至少128人死亡，數十萬人從危險地區轉移。災害性天氣很可能還將持續。

But people found a bit of respite from the grim news on Tuesday when some of the thousands of pigs that appeared destined for a watery end were rescued, one day after their keepers had bid them a tearful goodbye.

但是，嚴峻的洪災新聞中也出現了一點讓人高興的事，本週二，數千只似乎註定會被淹死的生豬獲救了，就在一天之前，飼養員才揮淚和它們訣別。

On Monday, the Chinese news media showed pictures of Li Zuming, a worker at a pig farm in Anhui Province, who was distraught as he waded through rising waters that threatened to drown thousands of pigs. Some animals gathered around another worker, as if to ask whether there was anything he could do.

週一，中國新聞媒體發佈了安徽省某豬場員工李祖明的圖片，他費力地趟過正在上漲的洪水，憂心如焚地看着養殖場裏即將被淹死的生豬。一些豬聚集在另一名工人周圍，好像是在問他能不能想點辦法。

Pigs can be strong swimmers, as they demonstrate in diving displays that some Chinese pig farms use to improve the animals’ flesh and amuse visitors. But the floods in Anhui appeared likely to overwhelm these factory-farm swine.

豬也可以是游泳健將，一些圖片顯示，中國有些養殖場爲了改善豬肉肉質，逗遊客開心，讓豬在水裏玩。但安徽的洪水似乎會把這些養殖場的豬淹沒。

“More than 6,000 pigs inside have no hope of survival,” said one of the news reports that ignited national sympathy for Mr. Li and his threatened animals. (A newsPaper, The Southern Metropolitan Daily, later said that there were in fact 3,000 pigs stuck in the rising waters.)

“場內6000餘頭生豬已無生存希望”，新聞報道稱，這引發了大家對李祖明和這些面臨滅頂之災的動物的同情。（《南方都市報》後來說是3000頭豬被困在上漲的洪水中。）

Sanitation rules, among other reasons, meant that the pigs could not simply be released to swim for their lives, because that might spread disease or leave animal corpses floating around.

基於包括衛生條例在內的許多原因，他們不能爲了讓這些生豬活命而直接放了它們，讓它們涉水逃生，因爲這可能會傳播疾病，或導致動物屍體四處漂浮。

But in a twist worthy of the movie “Babe,” many of the pigs won a reprieve on Tuesday. The government of Lu’an, a city in Anhui, mobilized workers to help relocate the pigs, reported The Paper, a Chinese news website.

但是，堪比電影《小豬寶貝》(Babe)的事情發生了，本週二，很多生豬獲得了救援。中國新聞網站《澎湃新聞》報道稱，安徽六安市的政府動員了工作人員來幫助轉運救援這些生豬。

“As well, some members of the public came to help of their own accord, and soon, there were 50 or 60 there,” the report said. Another news report showed pictures of rescuers dragging the creatures to safety and herding them on trucks.

“也有其他的一些民衆自發前來幫忙，目前現場總共有五六十人，”報道稱。另一條新聞圖片顯示，救援人員把這些豬拖到安全的地方，然後趕上卡車。

People less misty-eyed about pigs may point out that pork is big business in China, and that prices have been rising, even before the floods struck. Some online commenters pointed out that the rescued pigs would go straight to the slaughterhouse and end up on dining tables before long. But other observers enjoyed the moment.

對豬沒那麼有感情的人可能會指出，豬肉在中國是一門大生意，甚至在洪水爆發之前，豬肉價格就已經在上漲。一些網民評論說，救出的生豬會直接被送到屠宰場，沒多久就出現在餐桌上。但其他人對這件事感到高興。

“Heartwarming!” declared Xinhua, the state news agency.

“很溫馨！”官方新聞社新華社稱。