News Summary:

• Guam and Hawaii are squarely in the crosshairs as two Pacific storm systems churn toward the islands, setting the stage for possible impacts over the next several days.
• The American Red Cross is sending support to both areas, deploying disaster teams from across the country to help.
• Help people affected by disasters like floods, storms and countless other crises by making a donation to Red Cross Disaster Relief. You can donate by visiting redcross.org, calling 1- 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small, whenever and wherever they occur across the country.

Guam and Hawaii are squarely in the crosshairs as two Pacific storm systems churn toward the islands, setting the stage for possible impacts over the next several days. The American Red Cross is sending support to both areas, deploying disaster teams from across the country to help.

Tropical Storm Sinlaku is bearing down on Guam and the Mariana Islands in the western Pacific as a different storm in the central Pacific is inundating Hawaii with more than a foot of rain.

Sinlaku may grow to a Category 3 typhoon before it makes landfall on or near Guam and the Mariana Islands, two U.S. territories. Weather conditions will start to deteriorate on Sunday with Sinlaku bringing 120 mph winds and dropping almost two feet of rain on the islands between Sunday and next Wednesday. Major flooding and landslides are possible.

The entire state of Hawaii is under a flood watch. Some communities have already gotten more than a month’s worth of rain as the storm continues. Officials warn that evacuations may be necessary as the saturated ground makes the area vulnerable to new flooding. This latest severe weather hits Hawaii as people still recover from the late March Kona low storms which caused catastrophic flooding across the islands.

RED CROSS RESPONSE The Red Cross is deploying leadership teams and shelter volunteers to both Hawaii and Guam.

Guam and the Mariana Islands are unincorporated U.S. territories and people born there are U.S. citizens. Some are comparing Tropical Storm Sinlaku to 2023’s Typhoon Mawar which caused billions of dollars in damage. On Guam, shelters open in partnership with island Education Departments, then are taken over by local officials. As disaster teams head toward the island, the Red Cross is finalizing plans to support sheltering after the storm’s impact, working with local and federal partners, along with community agencies to ensure people get the help they need.

On Hawaii, shelters are open across the islands where Red Cross volunteers stand ready to support anyone impacted by this new storm. In addition to volunteers from the islands, a Red Cross leadership team and shelter volunteers are being deployed to Hawaii to help.

HOW YOU CAN HELP Help people affected by disasters like floods, storms and countless other crises by making a donation to Red Cross Disaster Relief.

You can donate by visiting redcross.org, calling 1- 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small, whenever and wherever they occur across the country.

You can also help by becoming a volunteer. The American Red Cross Pacific Islands Region Guam Chapter is urging community members to sign up as shelter volunteers to support their neighbors. Full details are available here.

In Hawaii, hundreds of local volunteers helped during the previous storms. See their efforts here.

We invite you to join these volunteers working to bring comfort and relief to people in need. Your time and talents can make an impact. Find the best way to get involved by visiting redcross.org/volunteer.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO People should get their households ready now. Learn how here. It’s also critical to follow these safety steps:

FLOOD SAFETY Be prepared to evacuate immediately if local officials ask you to do so. Don’t return home until they say it is safe.

• Don’t walk, swim or drive through floodwaters. Turn around, don’t drown!
• Stay off the roads. If you must drive and you encounter a flooded roadway, turn around and go another way.
• Follow evacuation routes and don’t try to take shortcuts because they may be blocked.
• If you’re caught on a flooded road and waters are rising around you, quickly get out of the car, move to higher ground and stay there.
• Check with loved ones and neighbors to see if they need help.

TYPHOON SAFETY "Hurricane" and "typhoon" are different regional names for tropical cyclones. People on Guam should follow these steps to help keep everyone safe.

• Before the storm, make one plan to evacuate and another one to shelter safely at home.
• Always include pets in your plans.
• If you need to evacuate, plan where you’ll go, how you’ll get there and where you’ll stay.
• Mobile, manufactured or trailer homes and recreational vehicles (RVs) are not safe during hurricanes and tropical storms. Make a plan to go to a safer location.
• If you can stay home, be ready to live without power, water, gas, phone and internet for a week or longer depending on the storm.
• To prepare for high winds, cover windows with permanent storm shutters or plywood.
• Bring outdoor items — like lawn furniture and trash cans — inside, so they can’t be picked up by high winds and cause damage. Secure big objects that can’t be brought inside.
• Clean out drains, gutters and downspouts.
• Check with loved ones and neighbors to see if they need help preparing.
• Be prepared to evacuate immediately if local officials advise. Bring your go-kit and pets. Don’t return home until officials say it is safe.
• Follow evacuation routes and don’t try to take shortcuts because they may be blocked.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the American Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. ADGP and Disaster Responder members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables the Red Cross to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by disaster.

Mission Leader Members: Amazon; American Airlines; Bank of America; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Costco Wholesale; Dollar General; Ford Philanthropy; Lowe's; State Farm

ADGP Leaders: Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Caterpillar Foundation; Chick-fil-A; CMA CGM Foundation; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Mobility Foundation; FedEx; Honda; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Mastercard; McDonald’s Corporation; Merck; Nationwide Foundation; PetSmart Charities; The Pfizer Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda; Truist Foundation; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; Wells Fargo Foundation

ADGP Members: ALDI; The Allstate Foundation; Altria Group; Aon; Baxter International Foundation; Bread Financial; Capital One; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; Edison International Foundation; Elevance Health Foundation; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Fox Corporation;  GE Aerospace Foundation; General Motors; Google.org; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; HCA Healthcare; The Home Depot Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Microsoft; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; Northrop Grumman Foundation; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; Stryker; Suburban Propane; Target; The Winn-Dixie Company; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco; Wingstop Restaurants; Zoetis Foundation

Disaster Responder Program Members: 3M; 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe Foundation; The AES Corporation; Aflac; Albemarle Corporation; The Allstate Foundation; American Family Insurance; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works; Blue Cross Blue Shield Association; Build-A-Bear Foundation; Canadian National Railway; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Cisco and Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; The Deluxe Foundation; DENSO North America Foundation; DHL Supply Chain; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Dollar Tree; Duke Energy; Eli Lilly and Company Foundation; Enbridge; Equitable ; Erie Insurance; Farmers Insurance®; Fastenal; Grainger; HP Foundation; International Paper; Invitation Homes; John Deere; Johnson & Johnson Foundation; Keurig Dr Pepper; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation ; L'Oréal Groupe; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo ; Liberty Mutual Insurance; LKQ; Macy’s, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Martin Marietta; Masco Corporation; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; Mutual of Omaha Foundation; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Nike Foundation; Norfolk Southern;  Northwestern Mutual; Old Dominion Freight Line; Old Republic International Corporation; Oxy; Pacific Life Foundation; Phillips 66; Prudential; QBE Foundation; Qualcomm; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reynolds American Inc.; RGA Foundation; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Salesforce; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Sunbelt Rentals; T-Mobile; Tennant Company; Toyota Tsusho America, Inc.; Uber; U-Haul International; Uber; Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation; US Foods; Westlake Corporation; Yum! Brands; Zurich