United States (AFP) – Authorities in the Northern Marianas and Guam reported extensive damage including fallen trees and downed power lines Monday after a super typhoon with the force of a category-five hurricane hit the US Pacific territories. No casualties had been reported as of early evening, although with treacherous conditions throughout much of the day hindering clear-up operations, a full picture was yet to emerge.
Worst hit was the small island of Rota, which was struck by the full force of Super Typhoon Bavi early Monday with winds of up to 180 miles (290 kilometers) per hour, knocking out power, water, and communications for many of its 1,500 residents. A spokeswoman for the Rota Municipal Operations Center, Lou Rosario, reported that there had been instances of “major damages.”
“A lot of telephone and power lines are down. I think this is a major, major storm,” said Juan Pan Guerrero, president of the Rota Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve been out of power and communications for almost eight hours,” he added. The National Weather Service had warned prior that a direct hit by Bavi would render most of Rota “uninhabitable for weeks, perhaps longer.”
The island of Tinian, northern parts of Guam, and the southern tip of Saipan experienced winds equivalent to a category-one hurricane, according to NWS meteorologist Marcus Landon Aydlett. On Guam, AFP reported downed trees, fallen streetlamps, debris strewn over roads, and at least one car overturned by the wind.
Around 10 major roads were impassable due to flooding, fallen trees, downed utility lines, rockslides, and other storm-related damage, Guam authorities stated. “Stay off the road. Any additional vehicles on the road hinder emergency responders and delay the expedited clearing of the roads,” the Joint Information Center warned, noting that “hazardous conditions remain.”
Edwin Santa Theresa, a 56-year-old health worker on Tinian Island, mentioned that residents had been “prepared” for the storm after being hit by Super Typhoon Sinlaku in April. “Our power was only restored to my house four days ago (after Sinlaku), but now it’s out again. I just hope that after this typhoon passes, electricity will be restored quickly,” he told AFP.
Rowell Mariano, 61, in Saipan, the main island of the Northern Marianas, expressed that the April storm was worse for him. “Sinlaku was stronger because the center of the storm passed directly over Saipan,” Mariano remarked. “During Sinlaku, our house was flooded because of the strong winds and heavy rain, and our ceiling was damaged. Sinlaku was really traumatic for us.”
Several hundred people were holed up at the Guam Plaza Hotel, where windows shook violently during the night and into Monday, with rain leaking into rooms and stairwells. Approximately 70 percent of the guests – who were mostly locals rather than tourists – were staying in the hotel. “Our hotel is locally owned so we cater to our local customers and we are going to make sure they have a shelter here,” general manager Sudipta Basu, 59, told AFP.
Already on Sunday afternoon, the roads of Guam and the Northern Marianas were practically deserted except for police cars and surfers coming back from enjoying the huge waves. Almost all stores were closed, many of them with their windows boarded up. Pinky Cubacub, 55, said she bought $500 worth of plywood at a lumber store for her eatery on Guam. “I cannot afford to lose so many days. It hurts,” she expressed to AFP.
In 2023, Guam and the Northern Marianas – part of an archipelago several thousand kilometers (miles) west of the mainland United States – had been hit by Mawar, the biggest storm in decades. Warmer oceans help tropical storms intensify and add more moisture, which can result in heavy rain. The world’s oceans experienced their hottest June on record and could set fresh highs in the months ahead, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Marine Service.
The World Meteorological Organization warned on Friday that El Nino, which typically occurs every two to seven years and lasts nine to 12 months, has already begun in the tropical Pacific and is likely to be strong. The natural climate phenomenon warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, triggering worldwide changes in winds, pressure, and rainfall patterns. “Our big concern for this being an El Nino year is that it’s going to be a lot busier than we’ve seen in the last five or six years,” said Aydlett of the NWS.
© 2024 AFP
