By John O’Connor
For Variety
HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — While Typhoon Sinlaku blasted Guam with rain and gusts over the course of a couple days, it was Saipan and Tinian that bore the brunt of the storm’s fury.
Sinlaku made a direct passage near or over both islands, tracking similarly to Super Typhoon Yutu in 2018, which struck Tinian directly.
When Yutu devastated the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Guam Power Authority assisted with their restoration efforts, and the utility has similarly reached out to help the islands recover from Sinlaku.
According to GPA, the utility has reached out to key personnel from the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation.
“We have extended GPA’s assistance through mutual aid agreement for post-typhoon recovery, once we are closer to full power restoration of our island,” GPA stated.
“Similarly, to 2018 post-Yutu typhoon recovery, GPA intends to provide line-workers, materials and equipment to include bucket trucks to assist with the restoration,” the utility added.
Sinlaku’s slow movement, at roughly 3 mph as it passed over Saipan and Tinian, meant residents endured an extended period within the storm’s eyewall. Landon Aydlett, warning coordination meteorologist at National Weather Service Guam, described that experience as hours of the most intense conditions a tropical cyclone can produce.
