Typhoon Mawar tore over the second-largest US territory the previous night, tearing off roofs, destroying trees, and leaving part of the isolated Pacific island without electricity and utilities. On Thursday, Guam’s governor announced the all-clear.
The governor’s office said there were minor injuries but no fatalities were recorded. The National Weather Service lifted a typhoon watch as she gave the all clear Thursday evening, returning the island to its usual state of typhoon readiness.
Typhoon Mawar’s Devastation
She expressed her gratitude to the Guamanians for maintaining their safety and security throughout the hurricane.
According to Joint Region Marianas, survey and work crews were evaluating damage at military installations, which were only accessible to essential personnel.
After the eyewall passed, more than 2 feet (60 cm) of rain fell in the island’s central and northern regions.
The whirling typhoon created storm surges, waves that smashed through coastal reefs, and inundated homes, flooding the island’s international airport.
Mawar, the most powerful typhoon to strike the region of over 150,000 people since 2002, briefly touched down there about 9 pm.
According to weather service experts, the hurricane hit the northern point of the island on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm at Andersen Air Force Base.
At the beginning, contact on the remote island was challenging due to power and internet outages. In a late-morning video message, Leon Guerrero advised locals to stay at home and avoid traveling because of the persistently strong winds.
More than 130 employees were pre-staged or already dispatched, according to the Federal Disaster Management Agency, on Wednesday to support the storm response.
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Mobilizing Resources and Anticipating Mawar’s Path
Specialized people, emergency communications gear, and more than 100 generators have all been deployed.
Around four times as much food and water as was available during Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018 is fully stocked in the agency’s distribution center, and more supplies are ready in case they are required, according to FEMA.
The storm is anticipated to travel for days in a direction northwest before entering the Philippine Islands.
Next week, Taiwan could be in danger from the storm. With winds of 150 mph, Mawar regained its designation as a super typhoon on Thursday (241 kph). According to the weather service, they had accelerated to 175 mph (282 kph) by early on Friday. Mawar, which in Malay means “rose,” was expected to keep moving in the same general direction and at the same speed through Saturday.
Mawar was centered early on Friday and heading west-northwest at 14 mph. It was situated 265 miles (426 kilometers) west-northwest of Guam and 280 miles (451 kilometers) west of Rota, Guam’s neighbor to the north (23 kph).
On Thursday, officials also issued all-clear statements for Rota, Saipan, and Tinian. The Commonwealth Utilities Corp. reported that all of Rota was without power on Thursday night. On the island, there are roughly 2,500 people.
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