Super Typhoon Sinlaku, strongest this year, wallops Northern Mariana Islands
Typhoon Sinlaku caused significant damage and severe flooding to Guam and the Northern Mariana islands.
Video from the Mariana Islands shows strong, damaging winds and heavy rain in Saipan, as Super Typhoon Sinlaku moved through the region.
A major typhoon made landfall in the Northern Mariana Islands Tuesday evening local time. Strong winds and heavy rain caused damage from Guam through Saipan.
Super Typhoon Sinlaku, with the strength of a Category 4 hurricane, was an extremely dangerous and potentially devastating storm for parts of the Marianas. Tinian and Saipan had the greatest risk of widespread impacts, AccuWeather meteorologists said.
Saipan International Airport reported a wind gust of 130 mph at 10 p.m. local time Tuesday. Farther south, the wind at the Guam International Airport gusted to 84 mph at 7 p.m.
No weather stations in Tinian or Saipan were still reporting on Wednesday.
In Guam, water damage caused "absolute chaos," the National Weather Service said, while telecommunications companies reported about half the cell towers offline as of Wednesday morning, according to PostGuam.
How unusual is a typhoon in Guam in April?
Historically, Guam's typhoon season runs from June to November, but the island can be affected by tropical storms at any time of year. The last strong typhoon to impact Guam was Bolaven on Oct. 10, 2023. Typhoon Bolaven caused flooded roads in Guam and downed trees in Saipan.
"You have to go back to Super Typhoon Andy in 1989 for the last Category 3 hurricane equivalent or stronger typhoon to pass near Guam during the month of April," AccuWeather Lead International Forecasters Jason Nicholls said.
"The outer bands of Kujira in 2003 and Isa in 1997 brushed Guam, but the storms were well removed from the island," he added.
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