UNITED STATES, July 6,  (V7N) — A “super typhoon” with the strength of a category-five hurricane tore through the US Pacific territories of Northern Marianas and Guam on Monday, with authorities reporting “major” damage on the small island of Rota.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the “entirety” of Rota was in the eye of Super Typhoon Bavi, which packed winds of up to 180 miles (290 kilometers) per hour before moving slowly westward.

But the group of islands — several thousand kilometers west of the mainland United States — was still being battered by fierce winds and driving rain by midday, forcing residents to shelter indoors.

When the storm first hit early Monday, the NWS urged Rota’s roughly 1,500 residents on X to “treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!

Local authorities on Rota — the southernmost part of the Northern Marianas, less than 80 km north of Guam — said they had received reports of “major damages,” but with communications disrupted the full extent was unclear.

"We are hanging in there. We are experiencing heavy winds and flooding here... Some people are already reporting major damages," said Lou Rosario, public information officer for the Rota Municipal Operations Center.

Rosario added that some cellphone services were down due to a fallen tower.

The NWS had earlier warned that a direct hit on Rota would make most of the island “uninhabitable for weeks, perhaps longer,” with nearly all trees snapped and power outages lasting “weeks to possibly months.”

The island of Tinian, northern parts of Guam, and the southern tip of Saipan saw winds equivalent to a category-one hurricane, NWS meteorologist Marcus Landon Aydlett said in a Facebook Live briefing.

"Super Typhoon Bavi is leaving the area," he said. "Gradually, conditions are going to be improving."

The Northern Marianas and nearby US territory of Guam are home to around 210,000 people combined.

Authorities on Guam said the island could see 8 to 12 inches of precipitation, raising the risk of flash flooding.

The NWS said winds of 50-80 mph with gusts to 100 mph were expected to last through late afternoon.

"Residents should remain sheltered in place. NWS continues to describe this as an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation," it said.

Edwin Santa Theresa, 56, a health clinic worker on Tinian, said residents were “prepared” for the storm.

"I think our main problem will be fuel because the supply is limited," he told AFP.

"Our power was only restored to my house four days ago (from a previous typhoon in April), but now it's out again. I just hope that after this typhoon passes, electricity will be restored quickly."

Rowell Mariano, 61, in Saipan, said April’s storm was worse for him.

"(Super Typhoon) Sinlaku was stronger because the center of the storm passed directly over Saipan," he said.

"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."

In 2023, another massive storm, Mawar, the biggest in decades, caused major damage in the area.

'It hurts'

Several hundred people sheltered at the Guam Plaza Hotel as windows shook violently and rain leaked into rooms and stairwells.

Around 70 percent of guests were locals who had moved in while the storm passed. The hotel spent $800,000 on a backup generator in April.

"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.

By Sunday afternoon, roads in Guam and the Northern Marianas were largely deserted except for police cars and surfers returning from the large waves. Almost all stores were closed, many with windows boarded up.

Pinky Cubacub, 55, said she bought $500 worth of plywood for her eatery on Guam.

"I cannot afford to lose so many days. It hurts," she told AFP.

El Nino

The world’s oceans saw their hottest June on record and could set new highs in the months ahead, the European Union’s Copernicus Marine Service said Wednesday.

Warmer oceans help tropical storms intensify and add moisture, which can fall as heavy rain.

The World Meteorological Organization warned 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 climate phenomenon warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, driving 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.

END/WD/RH