List of typhoons on Guam

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Guam lies in the path of typhoons and it is common for the island to be threatened by tropical depressions and storms, and occasional typhoons during the wet season. The highest risk of typhoons is from August through November. They can, however, occur year-round. This is a list of typhoons that caused deaths, injuries and/or severe damage on Guam.

Date Name Category Atm. pressure Wind speed Deaths Comments
1671-10-07 - "Eye passed directly over island, with most of the homes on the island toppled, as well as the church and the rectory suffering the same fate. A great many people were killed by falling debris and inadequate shelter while the damage to agriculture crops was a serious loss to the people."[1]: 20 
1680-11-11 - "It lasted two days and caused frightful disorder. Almost all the houses were toppled over, canoes smashed, trees and crops ruined. To add to the disaster, the sea became so swollen that the people were obliged to flee to the mountains"[1]: 20 
1693-11-20 - 14 "It began at dusk on the night of November 20 with a deluge of rain. The wind moved from north to south and whipped up the sea to such a manner that it seemed as if the island of Guam would be submerged. The sea broke its bounds and spread inland taking trees, houses and churches with it. Even the fortress at Agana toppled and was washed away. Not a house nor building remained standing on the island. Inland from the shore, the soil was covered with sand and stones left there by the subsiding sea."[1]: 20 
1733-12 - "severely damaged all trees and food crops. In Agaña it destroyed all buildings that had remained standing after the town fire of March of the same year."[1]: 20 
1822-09-09 - "damaged the Palacio and other Spanish administration buildings, among them the government store"[1]: 20 
1848-08-10 - "described as a devastating typhoon that caused extensive damage"[1]: 22 
1853-09-23 - "causing widespread devastation"[1]: 22 
1872-09-19 - "caused damage to buildings and agricultural production, and also wrecked a Spanish mail ship. [...] Damage to Spanish buildings includes roof damage to the Palacio in Agaña, as well as the Casa Reál (former palace) in Umatac."[1]: 22 
1900-05-26 - "severely affecting the southern part of the island by demolishing structures in Sumay, Agat, Merizo and Inarajan. Damage to vegetation was substantial, with all crops destroyed. The vessel USS Brutus was torn off her moorings in Apra Harbor and blown onto a reef"[1]: 23 
1900-11-13 Typhoon of 1900 926 mbar (27.3 inHg) 100 "A typhoon devastates Guam Island, destroying towns and 100 lives; the cruiser Yosemite founders."[2]
1940-11-03 999 mbar (29.5 inHg) 200 km/h (120 mph) 5 The storm destroyed a majority of the island's crops, caused extensive damage to many military structures, and destroyed thousands of residential homes. Governor George McMillin requested $50,000 (1940 USD, $923,634 2022 USD) in aid from the American Red Cross.[3]
1962-11-11 Typhoon Karen 5 932 mbar (27.5 inHg) 272 km/h (169 mph) 11 Regarded as the worst typhoon to ever impact Guam. 95 percent of homes were destroyed,[4] and those left standing were damaged.[5] Approximately 45,000 people, mostly Guamanians, were left homeless.[6] 11 people lost their lives and about 100 others were injured.[4][7] Losses across the island amounted to $250 million (1962 USD, $2.14 billion 2022 USD).[4][7] The damage across Guam was described as "'much more serious" than it had been during the second Battle of Guam, when American troops retook the island from the Japanese.[8] The U.S. Navy described the damage as equal to that of an indirect hit from a nuclear bomb.[9] Acting governor Manuel Guerrero said that the recovery effort of the previous 17 years had been "completely wiped out".[10]
1976-05-21 Typhoon Pamela 4 220 km/h (140 mph) 1 Typhoon-force winds – greater than 118 km/h (73 mph) – for 18 hours. An estimated 80% of the buildings on the island were damaged, including 3,300 houses that were destroyed. Pamela's slow motion produced 856 mm (33.7 in) of rainfall, making May 1976 the wettest on record in Guam.
1997-12-17 Typhoon Paka 5 948 hPa (28.0 inHg) 277 km/h (172 mph) Around 1,500 buildings destroyed on the island,[11] of which 1,160 were single-family homes.[12] A further 10,000 buildings sustained damage to some degree.[11] In all, about 5,000 people were left homeless due to the typhoon. An estimated 30–40% of the public buildings received major damage.[12]
2002-12-08 Typhoon Pongsona 4 938 mbar (27.7 inHg) 278 km/h (173 mph) 1 Third lowest recorded atmospheric pressure, after the Typhoon of 1900 and Karen. Typhoon Pongsona also left 65% of the island's water wells inoperable,[13] with most of Guam left without water service following the storm.[14] Officials estimate the typhoon destroyed 1,300 homes, severely damaged 1,825, and lightly damaged 4,800.[15] Damage totaled over $700 million (2002 USD, $1.01 billion 2022 USD).
Note: Only greatly damaging, injurious, or deadly events should be recorded.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Spennemann, Dirk H.R. (October 2004). "Typhoons in Micronesia. A history of tropical cyclones and their effects until 1914". ResearchGate. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands: Division of Historic Preservation. doi:10.13140/RG.2.1.3940.6249/1. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  2. ^ Brooklyn Daily Eagle Almanac. New York: Buckley, Denton & Company. 1901. p. 615.
  3. ^ "Typhoon Spreads Wreckage Across Guam; Plea to Red Cross". The New York Times. 4 November 1940. p. 1.
  4. ^ a b c John A. Rupp & Mark A. Lander (May 1996). "A Technique for Estimating Recurrence Intervals of Tropical Cyclone-Related High Winds in the Tropics: Results for Guam". Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology. 35 (5): 627–637. Bibcode:1996JApMe..35..627R. doi:10.1175/1520-0450(1996)035<0627:ATFERI>2.0.CO;2.
  5. ^ Associated Press (November 13, 1962). "Six Dead In Guam Typhoon: Damage by Karen Set at Hundreds Of Millions". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Honolulu, Hawaii. pp. 1, 20. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  6. ^ Associated Press (November 13, 1962). "Typhoon Karen Wreaks Dreadful Guam Toll". The Windsor-Star. Honolulu, Hawaii. p. 2. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Annual Tropical Cyclone Report: Typhoon Karen" (PDF). Joint Typhoon Warning Center. 1963. pp. 202–216. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  8. ^ Associated Press (November 13, 1962). "Typhoon Slams Guam Harder Than War". The Miami News. Honolulu, Hawaii. p. 3A. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  9. ^ Cunningham, p.301
  10. ^ Australian Associated Press (November 14, 1962). "Typhoon Toll Six Dead". The Age. Honolulu, Hawaii. p. 4. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  11. ^ a b EQE International (1998). "Typhoon Paka – December 1997" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2010-04-14.
  12. ^ a b National Climatic Data Center (1997). "Event Report for Typhoon Paka". Archived from the original on 2010-12-24. Retrieved 2010-04-14.
  13. ^ "Pacific" (PDF). Storm Data and Unusual Weather Phenomena with Late Reports. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 44 (12): 119–121. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-07-30. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
  14. ^ Federal Emergency Management Agency (2003). "Update on Recovery Efforts in Guam and Rota following Super Typhoon Pongsona". Archived from the original (DOC) on September 30, 2006. Retrieved 2007-06-29.
  15. ^ Bonnie Gillespie (2002). "Hope Prevails Amid Complex Recovery in Guam". RedCross.org. Archived from the original on 2008-02-06. Retrieved 2007-07-23.
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