Chapter 1

I SURVIVED THE GALVESTON HURRICANE, 1900

我在1900年的加尔维斯顿飓风中幸存下来

CHAPTER 1 SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1900 AROUND 7:00 P.M. GALVESTON, TEXAS Nooooooooo! A powerful blast of wind grabbed hold of eleven-year-old Charlie Miller and threw him into the raging flood. He screamed for his parents and

第一章1900年9月8日星期六晚上7点左右 加尔维斯顿，德克萨斯州，不！一阵强风抓住了11岁的查理·米勒，把他扔进了汹涌的洪水中。 他尖叫着要他的父母

his little sister as the churning waters swept him away. Charlie was caught in the jaws of the deadliest natural disaster ever to hit the United States. A vicious hurricane was destroying the beautiful city of Galveston, Texas. Winds tore apart houses and buildings. Towering waves crashed over streets. Thousands of people were already dead. And now the screaming winds and drowning waters had come for Charlie. Charlie sputtered and gasped as he struggled to keep his head above the waves. But the water was filled with wreckage. Every second something smacked him, scraped him, stabbed him. A chunk of roof. A wagon wheel. Hunks of wood and glass. All that was left of houses and shops he'd known all his life. Charlie managed to grab hold of a floating door and climb on top. But now he faced the killer wind, which had turned bricks and tiles into cannonballs. Charlie flattened himself against the

他的小妹妹被汹涌的海水卷走了。 查理被困在美国有史以来最致命的自然灾害中。 一场凶猛的飓风正在摧毁美丽的德克萨斯州加尔维斯顿市。 风把房屋和建筑物刮得粉碎。 滔天巨浪冲击着街道。 成千上万的人已经死亡。 现在，呼啸的狂风和淹没的海水向查理袭来。 查理喘息着，挣扎着把头伸出水面。 但水里到处都是残骸。 每一秒都有东西打他，刮他，捅他。 一大块屋顶。马车车轮 大块的木头和玻璃。剩下的都是他一辈子熟悉的房子和商店。 查理设法抓住了一扇浮动的门，爬到了上面。 但现在他面对着致命的风，这风把砖块和瓦片变成了炮弹。 查理伏在地上

cold, wet wood, squeezing his eyes shut. Even the pouring rain couldn't wash away his tears. Charlie had never felt so terrified, or alone. Just that morning, none of this had seemed possible. Galveston was one of the most important cities in Texas. Nobody believed a big hurricane could strike here. But then came the monstrous waves. Ba-room! The wind that blasted with shrieking gusts. Whoo-eeeeeesh! Whoo-eeeeeesh! Who-eeeeeesh! The sky turned black and split apart. Rain gushed down. But most shocking was when the usually peaceful Gulf of Mexico suddenly rose up — higher, higher, higher — and swallowed the city. Galveston was doomed. Charlie looked frantically around him. Where were Mama and Papa and his little sister, Lulu? Were they somewhere out here, too?

又冷又湿的木头，把他的眼睛紧紧地闭上。 即使大雨也洗不掉他的眼泪。 查理从来没有感到如此恐惧和孤独。 就在那天早上，这一切似乎都不可能。 加尔维斯顿是德克萨斯州最重要的城市之一。 没有人相信大飓风会袭击这里。 但接着来了滔天巨浪。 Ba-room !狂风呼啸而过。 Whoo-eeeeeesh !Whoo-eeeeeesh !Who-eeeeeesh !天空变黑，四分五裂。 雨水倾泻而下。但最令人震惊的是，通常平静的墨西哥湾突然上升，越来越高，越来越高，吞没了这座城市。 加尔维斯顿完蛋了。查理疯狂地环顾四周。 妈妈、爸爸和他的小妹妹璐璐在哪里？ 他们也在这附近吗？

Lightning flashed, each bolt lighting up a new horror floating by. Flash! A house on its side. Flash! A woman clinging to a pile of wood. Flash! A huge wooden pole, speeding through the water. Heading right for Charlie.

闪电闪过，每一道闪电都照亮了掠过的一种新的恐怖。 闪光!一侧的房子。 闪光!一个女人抓着一堆木头。 闪光!一根巨大的木杆，在水中疾驰。 向右飞向查理。