pyrotechnic（形容詞）煙火的

Gender-reveal celebrations used to be intimate events among family members, involving new parents cutting open pink or blue cakes or popping balloons filled with pink or blue confetti. But this week in California, a “smoke-generating pyrotechnic device” used during a gender reveal party ignited a wildfire that has burned through more than 10,000 acres of land, causing families to be evacuated from their homes and firefighters to work around the clock to contain it.

性別揭曉派對本來是屬於家人間的親密小聚會，由將要生小孩的父母舉辦，早期是切蛋糕，如果嬰兒是女孩，蛋糕內餡為粉紅色，如果是男孩，則為藍色；也有用氣球內裝粉紅色或藍色彩紙來顯示嬰兒性別。但這周一場在加州舉行的性別揭曉派對卻完全變了調，因派對上使用產生煙霧的煙花裝置，引發附近野火，火勢一發不可收拾，目前遭到燒毀的面積已達一萬英畝，迫使許多家庭遷移家園，消防隊員日夜加班來控制火勢。

reimburse（動詞）賠償

Criminal charges were being considered, and those responsible will have to reimburse the cost of fighting the fire. The California wildfire is an extreme example of the destruction wrought by the trend, but this is definitely not the first time that gender reveal parties have led to mass destruction. Jenna Karvunidis, credited with creating the gender-reveal party by hosting one for her firstborn in 2008, said in a telephone interview, “Could we just stop having these stupid parties and then the problem would solve itself?”

對次，加州當局表示將會對此次參與該派對的民眾追究刑事責任，並要求對火災造成的損害做出賠償。此次加州野火是這種慶祝派對引發災難的極端例子，但是這次絕不是第一次。2008年無意間「發明」性別派對的Jenna Karvunidis，曾在一個電話訪問中表示，大家是否可以停止這樣的活動，別再因慶祝派對而引發大規模災難了!

                                                             （本單元由臺北市立景美女中陳如慧老師提供）