Evacuations underway in Guam as Super Typhoon Bavi approaches
Super Typhoon Bavi, with winds up to 257 km/h, is barreling toward Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, prompting emergency evacuations and warnings of catastrophic damage from the U.S. National Weather Service.
Emergency evacuations are taking place in Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as a super typhoon bears down on the U.S. Pacific territories. According to the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS), Bavi is forecast to make landfall early Monday morning with winds of up to 257 km/h (160 mph).
The NWS warned that the "very dangerous" storm could cause "catastrophic" damage, including significant flooding from torrential rains and waves potentially reaching nearly 11 meters (35 feet) high on Monday.
The western Pacific region is particularly prone to tropical cyclones. While storms of this strength are unusual for the U.S. islands, scientists say climate change is making powerful typhoons more common.
Bavi is expected to pass directly over Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands by Monday afternoon, but the NWS warned that destructive conditions could be expected for eight to ten hours before or after the arrival of the storm's center.
"The window is rapidly closing to evacuate if directed to do so by local officials, or if your home is vulnerable to high winds or flooding," the agency said, adding that winds "will pose a deadly threat to those venturing outside."
Guam, usually a sun-soaked tourist destination with a population of about 170,000, has opened five evacuation centers in its schools. These sites have a maximum capacity of around 1,700 and are primarily intended for vulnerable people.
The island's civil defense office said at 1:00 p.m. local time (03:00 GMT) on Sunday that one of the evacuation sites had already reached maximum capacity and that people were being redirected to another site.
