目前在海地的一些国际救援队员对能否再救出新的受害者已经不报太大希望，尽管1月12日发生地震之后，至少已经发现了3名被困在瓦砾之下的幸存者，并且在以前的一些灾难中，曾有人在适宜的环境中生存了长达14天。
Some international rescue crews in Haiti have held out hope that they might still save some victims of the Jan. 12 earthquake, knowing that at least three survivors were found after a week trapped in the rubble, and in some previous disasters people have lasted as long as 14 days under optimal conditions.
但医生警告说这样的例子非常罕见，通常要满足多种不同寻常的条件，包括没有受伤、身体健康，有充足的水和空气。据近期年在医学期刊上发表的一篇文章称，在1990年菲律宾地震期间，一名27岁男子被困在宾馆健身房中生存了14天。他靠喝每天滴落的大量雨水为生。这是目前所知的最长的受困存活时间。
But doctors warned such cases are very rare. They also require an unusual combination of circumstances, including an uninjured, healthy victim and access to water and air. The longest survival time cited in a recent medical-journal article was the case of a 27-year-old man who reportedly lived 14 days after he was trapped in a hotel gym by the 1990 Philippines earthquake. He was able to drink rainwater that was replenished every day.
该文章是2006年发表的一篇综述文章，发表在《院前与灾难医学》(Prehospital and Disaster Medicine)杂志上。文章从媒体报道中搜集整理了幸存者的数据，并称只有少数人能撑过10天。乔治•华盛顿大学(George Washington University)急救医学助理教授史密斯(E. Reed Smith)是文章作者之一。他说，有一些个别的例子，但它们都具备利于生存的环境，特别是有水源。
Only a handful of other people have lasted more than 10 days, according to the article, a 2006 review published in Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 'There are some isolated cases, but they all had extenuating circumstances,' particularly a source of water, said E. Reed Smith, assistant professor of emergency medicine at the George Washington University, an author of the article, which compiled data on survivals from media reports.
联合国说自九天前地震把海地首都太子港的大部分地区夷为平地之后，国际救援队伍已经从海地的废墟中救出了121人，目前救援行动仍在继续。
The United Nations said 121 people have been pulled from the Haiti rubble by international teams, and efforts are continuing nine days after the earthquake that leveled much of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
但到周四为止，一些救援队已经乘飞机回国，而且海地政府预计很快将叫停救援行动。联合国秘书长潘基文(Ban Ki-moon)在与美国前总统克林顿(Bill Clinton)共同出席新闻发布会时称，联合国正在向重建的初期阶段迈进，正在考虑如何重建太子港。
But by Thursday some rescue teams had flown home, and the Haitian government was expected to call off the rescues soon. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, at a news conference with former President Bill Clinton, said the U.N. is moving to the early recovery phase and thinking about how to rebuild.
少数人戏剧性获救的例子，使人们对救出更多人抱有更大的希望。例如一个5岁的男孩周二在自家的废墟之下被发现。负责照看这名男孩的国际医疗队（International Medical Corps）的发言人称他当时严重脱水，但其它方面仍然健康。
A few dramatic examples, including a 5-year-old boy found Tuesday afternoon in the wreckage of his home, lifted hopes that more might be saved. The boy was severely dehydrated but otherwise healthy, said a spokeswoman for International Medical Corps, which cared for him.
由于海地气候条件相对温和，受害者有可能生存更长的时间。医生说，由于对肢体受挤压之后结果的认识得到改善，救援人员也比前几年准备得更充分。
Conditions in Haiti may be more likely to lead to long survivals than some previous disasters, largely because of the relatively temperate conditions. Rescue teams are also better prepared than they were years ago, because of an improved understanding of the effects of crushed limbs, doctors said.
美国密苏里大学(University of Missouri)医学院临床医学教授维科尔(Joseph F. Waeckerle)说，搜救行动一般在10至14天后结束。
Search-and-rescue operations typically end after around 10 to 14 days, said Joseph F. Waeckerle, a clinical professor at the medical school of the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
有时会有非常令人激动的情况出现。据报道，在1988年亚美尼亚地震中，一名16岁的男孩生存了12天。在2003年的伊朗地震中，一名56岁的受困男子存活了13天，但获救后很快在医院中死去。
Occasionally, there are very dramatic situations: In the 1988 Armenian earthquake, one 16-year-old boy reportedly lived for 12 days, while a 56-year-old man survived 13 days when trapped after the 2003 Iranian quake, though he died soon afterward in a field hospital.
2001年在印度，一对50多岁的姐弟受困后存活了10天，当时他们呆的地方空间很大，而且有食物。
In India in 2001, a sister and a brother in their 50s lived for 10 days when they were caught in a large space with access to food.
据该文章称，1985年在墨西哥，婴儿于8天后被从倒塌的医院中救出。由于在特定的环境下婴儿的新陈代谢比成人更有效率，因此存活时间可能比预计的更长。
In Mexico in 1985, infants were rescued from a collapsed hospital after eight days, according to the journal article. Babies may survive longer than expected, because their metabolisms can be more efficient than adults' under certain circumstances.
耶鲁大学(Yale University)公共卫生准备中心(Yale Center for Public Health Preparedness)主任德古迪斯(Linda Degutis)说，对受困于地震废墟中的人们而言，即便没有受伤，由于缺水会引发肾功能衰竭，存活时间一般仅为3至5天。一旦肾脏停止过滤体内废物，可能会导致其它器官受损。
Still, typical survival times for those trapped by earthquakes, even if they are uninjured, is only three to five days, as a lack of water begins to trigger kidney failure, said Linda Degutis, director of the Yale Center for Public Health Preparedness at Yale University. As the kidneys shut down and stop filtering the body's waste, it can lead to damage to other organs.
她还说，与此同时，身体会进入饥饿状态，开始消耗自身肌肉组织，增加了对肾脏的压力。但一个健康的人能够在没有食物的情况下生存数周。
At the same time, the body goes into starvation mode and begins consuming its own muscle mass, she said, adding to the strain on the kidneys. Still, a healthy person may be able to go weeks without food.
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