Last summer India had the largest power outage in human history affecting 600m people. So it stung when my visiting Indian mother-in-law pointed out that America’s east coast, including Washington, was “as bad as India”. Then it was a so-called derecho storm, which left 6m US homes without power for days in the searing heat. Last month it was Superstorm Sandy, which left 10m homes shivering. In late December forecasters project a heavy cold snap that is bound to cause blackouts. People are resigned to the prospect.
去年夏天，印度发生了人类历史上最大规模的停电事故，受影响的人有6亿之多。所以，当我前来探亲的印度籍岳母表示包括华盛顿在内的美国东海岸地区“像印度一样糟”的时候，这一评价听起来着实刺耳。当时，风暴德雷科(Derecho)正席卷美国东海岸，600万美国家庭因此断电数天，在酷热天气中饱受煎熬。上个月，超强风暴桑迪(Sandy)又让1000万美国家庭陷入恐慌的境地。天气预报机构预期，12月底会有一股很强的寒流，肯定会导致断电。对此，人们只能“听天由命”了。
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