Super Typhoon Melor (20W)- Spared!

That's a satellite infrared photo of Super Typhoon Melor (20W) moving
west of the Marianas (from the National Weather Service Forecast Office)

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers as we here on Saipan were spared most of the damage from Super Typhoon Melor (20W)! It could have been a disaster but the storm drifted far enough from us to cause only a little flooding, a few downed trees, power outages and delays in our everyday routines. We were very lucky and blessed! Please be careful if you are going to check out the waves since our waters remain trecherous. Check out this photo from the Marianas Variety taken by our friend Chris Nelson:Can you see the Banzai Cliff memorials in the picture? What's crazier is that the weather was so clear there 2 days before when I took a friend around sight seeing! Anyway, I am glad that we are all safe and got to spend some stormy moments with some of my favorite people.

Ti napu.

The Beachcomber

Tropical Storm Choi Won 15-W: Not Too Bad

Tropical Storm Choi Won 15-W was upgraded to a typhoon yesterday afternoon at about 4:00 PM. Thank goodness that it mostly cleared Saipan as it intensified during its northwesterly movement. I woke up this morning and heard on the radio that we were already downgraded to a Condition 3 which means "all clear" and that I needed to report to work.

I only saw a few trees, like this palm tree at the hospital that went down from the high winds.

View from Navy Hill: Can you see the angry sea?
The ponding basin at the hospital was filled to the brim with water.

I gotta thank the boys for helping with the boarding up and the boarding down of our office. Here's Perry and Darrel.
Here's a video clip of the wind and the rain from Navy Hill.

There should be some interesting beachcombing in the next few weeks after the weather has calmed. Can't wait to see what washes ashore that can be added to my collection. I hope all of my friends on Saipan are safe and kept themselves dry during the storm. Take care now.

Ti napu.

The Beachcomber

Tropical Storm Choi Won 15-W

In the next 12-24 hours, this could become a typhoon threatening the Marianas. This is from NOAA:

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED

TROPICAL STORM CHOI-WAN LOCAL STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TIYAN GU

416 AM CHST MON SEP 14 2009

...TROPICAL STORM CHOI-WAN APPROACHING THE NORTHERN MARIANAS...

.AREAS AFFECTED...

THIS LOCAL STATEMENT PROVIDES IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS FOR PEOPLE IN THE MARIANAS AND SURROUNDING

WATERS OUT TO 45 MILES.

.WATCHES/WARNINGS...

A TROPICAL STORM WARNING AND A TYPHOON WATCH REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR

TINIAN...SAIPAN AND AGRIHAN.

.STORM INFORMATION...

AT 100 AM CHST...1500Z...TROPICAL STORM CHOI-WAN WAS CENTERED NEAR

LATITUDE 15.8 DEGREES NORTH AND LONGITUDE 148.4 DEGREES EAST.

THIS IS ABOUT 275 MILES SOUTHEAST OF AGRIHAN

210 MILES SOUTHEAST OF ALAMAGAN

190 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF TINIAN AND SAIPAN

245 MILES NORTHEAST OF ROTA AND

295 MILES NORTHEAST OF GUAM.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE 70 MPH. TROPICAL STORM CHOI-WAN IS

MOVING WEST AT 7 MPH.

.SITUATION OVERVIEW...

TROPICAL STORM CHOI-WAN CONTINUES TO INTENSIFY AS IT APPROACHES

THE NORTHERN MARIANAS. HEAVY RAIN AND HIGH SURF WILL POUND LOCAL

REEFS AND BEACHES. HIGH WINDS WILL BLOW AWAY LOOSE OBJECTS LEFT

OUTDOORS.

.PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

FOR TINIAN...SAIPAN...AGRIHAN AND ALAMAGAN...NOW IS THE TIME TO

RUSH TO COMPLETION PREPARATIONS FOR THE PROTECTION OF LIFE AND

PROPERTY. SMALL CRAFT REMAIN IN PORT. CLOSELY MONITOR NOAA WEATHER

RADIO OR OTHER LOCAL NEWS OUTLETS FOR OFFICIAL STORM INFORMATION.

LISTEN FOR POSSIBLE CHANGES TO THE FORECAST AS DESCRIBED BY YOUR

LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE AND LOCAL EMERGENCY

MANAGEMENT.

Most of the schools have announced closure until further notice. There was a call for all "essential government workers" to report to work and secure workplaces. I've often wondered who is essential and who is not. Oh, well. Be safe all and see you soon!

Ti napu.

The Beachcomber