Typhoon Sinlaku left a trail of destruction and the scale of damage across the Northern Mariana Islands is becoming clearer. Photo credit: RNZ Pacific / Mark Rabago.
By Mark Rabago in Saipan
First person – Super Typhoon Sinlaku has left a trail of destruction across the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) after lashing the US territory in the North Pacific for three days without respite.
Reports are starting to emerge regarding the extensive damage caused by the storm, which made landfall on Tuesday night, bringing violent winds and relentless rain.
If your house was not built with semi-concrete or concrete, then it was destroyed.
I traveled across the island on Friday morning to see the damage around Saipan.
Solar panels at the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation – the main hospital – have been blown off the roof.
Residents thought it would be safe to park their cars there, but the facility offered little protection – almost all the vehicles were damaged, including my own.
At the moment, only a few stores are open, and those that are open are only accepting cash. Most shops are selling frozen meat at almost half the normal price, or giving it away, because there is no power or very little water.
There are long lines at the gas stations, stretching one to two two miles, because people want to get fuel and supplies.
However, all other businesses remain closed.
We are still under the highest and most urgent level of tropical cyclone readiness directive. People have lost a lot.
It will be be a long recovery and we need a lot of help.
We are hoping the US federal government will help us. I understand Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is coming on Saturday to assess the damages.