Burning Oil Tanker
After two ships collided in the East China Sea an oil tanker is still burning. The accident happened on Saturday evening, the cause for it is still unclear. Among the ships was an Iranian oil tanker. After the crash bad weather, fierce heat and thick black smoke made it difficult for the rescue crew to get near the ship. Rescuers from three different countries attempted to reach the ship.
Furthermore, the ship is in danger of exploding or sinking. The oil tanker is carrying condensate, an ultralight version of crude oil. During the extraction the condensate in the barrels converts to oil and poses a danger to the environment as it is harder to clean up. Scientists believe that much of the condensate evaporated or burned off but so far it is impossible to assess the damage.
The tanker was heading to South Korea. So far only one body has been found of the 32 man crew and the search for the rest of the team has been widened.
to collide (kəˈlaɪd) – mit jdm/etw zusammenstoßen
accident (ˈæksɪdənt) – der Unfall
fierce (fɪəs) – heftig, ungestüm, erbarmungslos
heat (hi:t) – die Hitze
thick (θɪk) – dicht, stark
to attempt (əˈtem(p)t) – etw versuchen
to carry (ˈkæri) – etw tragen, mit sich führen
crude (kru:d) – primitiv, einfach – hier: das Rohöl
extraction (ɪkˈstrækʃən) – das Entfernen, der Abbau
barrel (ˈbærəl) – das Fass, die Tonne
to convert (ˈkɒnvɜ:t) – umwandeln, verwandeln, umbauen
environment (ɪnˈvaɪ(ə)rənmənt) – die Umwelt, die Umgebung
to evaporate (ɪˈvæpəreɪt) – verdunsten, verdampfen
to assess (əˈses) – etw einschätzen, bewerten, bestimmen
Homeless People Removed for Royal Wedding
The royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will take place in May and for that everything is supposed to be perfect. According to Simon Dudley, a Conservative, the homeless people in Windsor are an eyesore. He asked police to take legal actions against the people that live on the streets of Windsor and remove them for the wedding.
He argued that that the beggars create a hostile atmosphere and that the bags they accumulate pose a security risk. Furthermore, it disturbs the tourists. Additionally, Dudley said, that many of the beggars and homeless people live on the street by choice. Homelessness increased in Windsor over the past year. The request by Dudley triggered a national outcry.
Many people took to Social Media and asked to help the homeless people rather than to stigmatise them. The wedding will bring many people to Windsor and it won´t do just to clear the streets for an event. Instead, more effort needs to be put into helping the people that have to live on the street because they have nowhere else to go. So far the royal family has not offered a comment on the situation but Prince Harry is known for his charitable work.
according (əˈkɔ:dɪŋ) – laut, nach
homeless (ˈhəʊmləs) – obdachlos, heimatlos
eyesore (aɪsɔ:ʳ) – der Schandfleck
to remove (rɪˈmu:v) – etw entfernen, räumen
beggar (ˈbegəʳ) – der/die Bettler/in
hostile (ˈhɒstaɪl) – feindselig, aggressiv
to accumulate (əˈkju:mjəleɪt) – etw ansammeln, anhäufen
to disturb (dɪˈstɜ:b) – etw stören, beunruhigen
choice (tʃɔɪs) – die Wahl, Entscheidung
to increase (ɪnˈkri:s) – erhöhen, steigen
request (rɪˈkwest) – Anfrage, Bitte
to trigger (ˈtrɪgəʳ) – etw auslösen
outcry (aʊtkraɪ) – der Protest, die Entrüstung
to stigmatise (ˈstɪgmətaɪz) – jdn brandmarken, abtun
effort (ˈefət) – die Anstrengung
charitable (ˈtʃærɪtəbl̩) – wohltätig, großzügig
Youtube Cuts Ties with Logan Paul
Logan Paul is a hugely popular vlogger on Youtube with over 15M subscribers. He started a controversy with a video showing a body of an apparent suicide victim in Japan. The video was posted on Dec 31st, triggering widespread criticism. It shows him and his friends at the Aokigahara forest, a site known for its high rate of suicides. They film a body and their shocked reactions to it but also make jokes.
Followers of Logan said the video was disgusting and disrespectful. Japan has the highest suicide rate in the developed world. This is a serious topic that shouldn’t be made fun of. Youtube put all original projects with Logan Paul on hold and removed his channels from Youtube´s Google preferred programme.
Logan later posted a video in which he apologised for what he did and said he felt ashamed of himself. He was overwhelmed with the situation at the time and that they should have stopped filming immediately.
vlogger (ˈvlɒɡəʳ) – der/die Videoblogger/in
subscriber (səbˈskraɪbəʳ) – der/die Abonnent/in
apparent (əˈpærənt) – offensichtlich, ersichtlich, scheinbar
suicide victim (ˈsu:ɪsaɪd ˈvɪktɪm) – der/die Selbstmörder/in
forest (ˈfɒrɪst) – der Wald
disgusting (dɪsˈgʌstɪŋ) – empörend, widerlich
disrespectful (ˌdɪsrɪˈspektfəl) – respektlos
developed (dɪˈveləpt) – entwickelt
serious (ˈsɪəriəs) – ernst
channel (ˈtʃænəl) – der Kanal, das Programm
to prefer (prɪˈfɜ:ʳ) – etw bevorzugen, präferieren
to apologise (əˈpɒləʤaɪz) – sich entschuldigen
ashamed (əˈʃeɪmd) – sich schämen
overwhelmed (ˌəʊvəˈ(h)welmd) – überwältigt sein, überfordert
immediately (ɪˈmi:diətli) – sofort, gleich