朝鮮巴士發生車禍,數十名中國遊客身亡

BEIJING — A bus crash in North Korea has killed 32 Chinese tourists and four North Korean workers, Chinese officials said on Monday.

北京——中國官員週一表示，朝鮮的一場巴士車禍造成32名中國遊客和四名朝鮮工人死亡。

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the crash, which took place on Sunday evening, as a “major traffic accident” but offered few details. Two tourists were seriously injured in the crash and were in critical condition, officials said.

中國外交部將週日晚間發生的這起撞車事件稱爲“重大交通事故”，但沒有提供其他細節。官員稱有兩名遊客在撞車事故中身受重傷，情況危急。

“We would like to express our deep condolences to the compatriots who died from China and the North Korean personnel,” the ministry said in a statement. “We offer our deep condolences to the families of the injured and the victims.”

“我們謹對遇難中國同胞和朝方人員表示沉痛哀悼，“外交部在一份聲明中說。 “向傷者和遇難者家屬表示深切慰問。”

The crash occurred at a time of intense diplomacy in the region. South Korea’s president, Moon Jae-in, is set to join the North’s leader, Kim Jong-un, on Friday for a summit meeting.

這起事故發生時，該地區正在進行激烈的外交斡旋。韓國總統文在寅預計將於週五與朝鮮領導人金正恩舉行峯會。

China, an ally of North Korea for decades, is the main source of tourism to the country. Many Chinese tourists visit North Korea seeking a sense of what China was like before it became one of the world’s largest economies. Day trips across the border are popular, as are visits to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.

數十年來，中國是朝鮮的盟友，也是朝鮮旅遊業的主要來源。許多遊客前往朝鮮，希望感受一下中國在成爲世界最大經濟體之一以前的生活。跨越邊境的一日遊很受歡迎，訪問朝鮮首都平壤也是如此。

Even as tensions over the North’s nuclear program have risen over the past year, the flow of tourists from China has continued. In 2012, the most recent year for which data is available, 237,000 Chinese people visited the country.

儘管過去一年圍繞朝鮮核計劃的緊張局勢有所加劇，但中國遊客仍在繼續涌入朝鮮。 在2012年，即有數據的最近一年，有23.7萬中國人訪問了朝鮮。

The circumstances of the crash, which occurred in North Hwanghae province, near the border with South Korea, remained unclear on Monday, and there was limited coverage in China’s state-run news media. An English-language channel affiliated with China Central Television, the state broadcaster, reported on Twitter that the bus had fallen from a bridge. The post was later deleted.

發生在黃海北道靠近韓國邊界的這起撞車事件的情況在週一仍不明朗，中國官方新聞媒體的報道十分有限。附屬於中國中央電視臺的一家英語頻道在Twitter上寫到，巴士從一座橋樑上墜落。帖子後來被刪除了。

Simon Cockerell, general manager of Koryo Tours, an agency in Beijing that organizes travel to North Korea, said that traffic accidents involving tourists were infrequent. He said he had visited the North 169 times but had only been involved in one accident.

高麗旅行社(Koryo Tours)在北京組織赴朝旅遊，該公司總經理西蒙·科克雷爾(Simon Cockerell)說，涉及遊客的交通事故並不多見。他說他訪問過朝鮮169次，但只有一次遇上了事故。

“Certainly, they have problems with infrastructure and that doesn’t help with road safety,” he said. “But it’s not like every time I go there I’m rolling the dice.”

“當然，他們在基礎設施方面存在問題，這對道路安全沒有幫助，“他說。 “但我不是每次去那裏的時候都會擲骰子。”