NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS — Super Typhoon Sinlaku is expected to make landfall on Tuesday in the Northern Mariana Islands as a Category 4 or 5 storm, bringing high winds and widespread flooding. On Monday, the storm was producing sustained winds of 173 mph (278 kph) as it neared the islands of Rota, Tinian and Saipan.
Sinlaku, the strongest tropical cyclone on Earth so far this year, was traveling west-northwest toward the Marianas Islands just after 9 a.m. ET, according to the National Weather Service office in Guam. The typhoon's maximum sustained winds stabilized at 175 mph as it approached the island chain, after peaking at 180 mph on Sunday. Forecasts indicated the storm is expected to weaken slightly over the next few days but should cross near the islands as a Category 4 or 5 typhoon, with high winds and flooding possible over the next 48 hours.
A typhoon warning was in place for Rota, Tinian and Saipan, while Guam was under a tropical storm warning. Tropical storm warnings were also in place for the islands of Pagan and Alamagan, and a tropical storm watch was in place for Agrihan. The U.S. Coast Guard issued flood and high wind warnings over the weekend.
President Donald Trump approved emergency disaster declarations for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands on Saturday, allowing for additional help with emergency services. U.S. military officials in Guam warned personnel to prepare for the storm and shelter in place. On Monday, Guam and other U.S. island territories in the western Pacific braced for the typhoon's arrival.
The Marianas are an archipelago comprising 15 islands, including Guam, located about 1,500 miles east of the Philippines, and are U.S.-held territories. Guam is home to three U.S. military bases. In 2023, Typhoon Mawar knocked out power on the island for days.
A super typhoon is the name given to the strongest tropical cyclones that form in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Super typhoons are equivalent to Category 4 or 5 hurricanes in the Atlantic and have sustained winds of at least 150 mph (240 kph). The Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Guam monitors super typhoons and began using the term in 1947, having identified more than 300 such storms since then.