《中英對照讀新聞》Driver near Seattle blames owl-watching for car crash西雅圖近郊出車禍 司機怪罪於賞貓頭鷹

◎周虹汶

A man who crashed his car into a utility pole near Seattle on Wednesday gave police a unique excuse for the pre-dawn accident: He was owl watching.

週三在西雅圖附近把其車輛撞上一支電線桿的一名男子，給了警方這起發生於黎明前之事故一個獨特理由：他當時正在觀賞貓頭鷹。

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Police in Tukwila, about 10 miles south of Seattle, said the driver told officers he rammed into the pole by accident because he was in hot pursuit of one of the nocturnal birds.

位於西雅圖南方約10英里的塔克維拉市警方說，這名駕駛告訴警察，他因對這種夜行性鳥類的其中一隻窮追不捨，以致意外撞上電線桿。

Nobody was injured in the early morning crash on a residential street, the police report said. The driver, who was not identified, was not arrested and did not appear to be impaired by drugs or alcohol, police said. (Reuters)

警方報告指出，無人在這起發生於清晨一處住宅區街道的車禍事故中受傷。警方沒有表明這名駕駛的身分，其未遭逮捕且似乎沒受到毒品或酒精損害影響。（路透）

新聞辭典

in hot pursuit of：介係詞片語，指緊緊追趕、熱切追求。例句：The police are in hot pursuit of the suspect.（警方正強力追緝該名嫌犯。）

nocturnal：形容詞，指夜間的、夜行性的。例句：Stars in the sky are a marvelous nocturnal sight.（滿天星斗是美妙的夜間景觀。）

impair：動詞，指損害、削弱、減少。例句：Poor food will impair your health.（粗劣的食物會損害你的健康。）