【明報專訊】South American countries Paraguay (巴拉圭), Argentina (阿根廷), Brazil (巴西) and Uruguay (烏拉圭) have experienced the worst flooding in 50 years. Owing to extensive rainfall, the water level of the rivers in those places rose, and they eventually flooded in late December, 2015. The impact is expected to continue to spring this year.

At least 6 people had died from the extreme weather. Paraguay (in central South America) is the hardest hit area. A state of emergency is in force in the country. Among the over 150,000 people who had to abandon their homes, 130,000 were from Paraguay.

These natural hazards were triggered by the El Nino phenomenon, which refers to the warming of surface waters over the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. It affects the atmospheric circulation worldwide. El Nino, meaning "the little boy" or "the Christ Child" in Spanish, usually peaks around Christmas, hence the name of the phenomenon.

(source: Ming Pao, BBC, Hong Kong Observatory)

■Photo story

Two boys were playing in one of the flooded areas on the Paraguay-Argentina border on 26 December 2015.

■Quiz

Choose the correct answers. (answers on next text)

1. Which of the following natural disasters has happened in Paraguay?

a. drought

b. flood

c. tornado

2. Which of the following words can replace "triggered" in paragraph three?

a. caused

b. happened

c. made

3. Which part of South America is Paraguay in ?

a. the northern part

b. the southern part

c. the central part

4. How has El Nino got its name, which means "the little boy" or "the Christ Child" in Spanish ?

a. A little boy has named it

b. It has been named after a little boy in Spain

c. It has been given this name because it usually peaks around Christmas

■Words

flooding 水災

El Nino phenomenon 厄爾尼諾現象

drought 旱災

■Glossary

extensive (adj) 大規模的

in force (adj) 生效

abandon (v) 離棄

equatorial (adj) 赤道附近的