Thousands of Guam residents and businesses are still without power and water days after Typhoon Mawar stormed through the island. However, crews for various utilities and companies are out working to get services fully restored even as the island is deluged with heavy rainfall.
Typhoon Mawar was the strongest storm Guam has seen in many years. With sustained winds of about 144 mph with gusts exceeding 170 mph, the island’s water and power, communications, and even distribution were impacted.
Mobil gas stations have slowly reopened. Hours of operations starting May 30 will be 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“Our teams are working to safely reopen more stations in the coming days. There is more than sufficient fuel to meet the needs of our customers and communities on the island,” Mobil officials stated in their press release.
According to a May 29 update, Mobil has 14 service stations open. Those locations are: East Agana, Airport, Maite, Fatima, Liguan, Yigo North, Perez Acres, Sinajana, Upper Tumon, Apra Heights, Agat, Ipan, and Yona. The Tamuning location has diesel only available for marked GPA vehicles.
Shell gas station also announced that as of 8 a.m. the following stations were open for all customers: Hagatna, Tamuning, Harmon, MicroMall Intersection, Yigo, and Tiyan. The Chalan Pago gas station provides diesel from noon to 8 p.m. The Upper Tumon Shell location is open for government first responders only.
Guam Power Authority did not release an update on May 30 as of 2 p.m. GPA officials on May 29 said about 76.9% of their substations are energized, which is needed to get other lines that come through those stations energized as well. With that, they had about 22% of system load restored and 48% of their feeder lines energized.
Guam Waterworks Authority’s last update posted on their Facebook page was May 28, with most villages having some water services restored.
Communications has also been a bit spotty. IT&E officials said crews are working around the clock to restore services.
“We thank our subscribers for their patience and understanding,” officials stated in a release. The company is taking steps to ensure subscribers remain connected:
• Generators have been deployed to undamaged cell sites that can be accessed safely and that have connectivity to the network.
• Southern cell sites suffered significant damage from the typhoon. We're unable to provide a timeline for restoration at this time. We are working to deploy a solution.
• All Prepaid subscribers get unlimited service, free of charge regardless of Prepaid Plan. • Data caps have been lifted for all Postpaid subscribers, free of charge.
• Tethering is available for all Postpaid subscribers, free of charge.
• Service suspension due to nonpayment is postponed until further notice. For the latest service updates, subscribers are encouraged to check IT&E’s official social media pages. Service-related issues can be reported by calling (671) 922-4483 or sending us a direct message on the official social media pages.
Meanwhile, humanitarian services to help Guamaians in the wake of Maware continue. Matson announced it will contribute $350,000 in transportation and in-kind services toward disaster relief in Guam, Micronesia and the CNMI. Company representatives expect to begin delivering relief supplies on voyage Manukai 237, which is scheduled to arrive on Tuesday, June 6.
Matson’s vessel, Maunawili, arrived on May 28 following the reopening of the Port of Guam and discharged 454 containers of general goods, according to the Joint Information Center. Matson is working with FEMA and the American Red Cross to facilitate shipments of relief supplies to Guam for the recovery process in the coming weeks and months. mbj