Super Typhoon Champi missed a direct hit on Guam this weekend by just ten miles, but Guam, Rota, Tinian and Saipan still saw impacts from the storm. The American Red Cross is there, helping those affected.

Multiple communities have lost power and water, with as many as 170 wells not operating. Some water systems have been down since Super Typhoon Sinlaku hit the islands in April. A Coastal Flood Warning and a High Surf Warning remain in effect for Guam and Rota due to the life-threatening rip currents and large, breaking surf.

RED CROSS RESPONSE During the storm, Red Cross disaster responders operated or supported 15 shelters on the four islands where more than 1,000 people took refuge from the storm.

Among those staying in the shelters on Guam was Maxine Seo Thomas, one of many residents who have faced repeated damage from the earlier typhoons. Maxine saw damage to her home twice before. Both Typhoons Sinlaku and Bavi took the roof off of her home. This time she made sure to tie it down with a chain before heading to the Red Cross shelter at Machananao Elementary School.

Maxine sought shelter again alongside her four daughters and two grandsons. She says it’s a very difficult situation because “we were fixing it up and then another one comes.” For all three storms, the Red Cross has been on the island providing assistance to those impacted.

“It’s really helpful for me, we got help from the Red Cross” Maxine said. “It’s a lot; they feed us, they give us tarps, help us fixi our house. It’s a big help.” Learn more here.

Now that the storm has passed, all shelters will close on Tinian and one shelter each will remain open on Saipan and Rota. The Red Cross is working with officials to determine what the shelter needs are on Guam.

Damage assessment will help identify neighborhoods needing relief supplies and other support.

Assessment is completed on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. No residential damage was identified on Saipan or Tinian. On Rota, people need tarps to replace those that were lost in the storm.

Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces workers report they will staff two Emergency Family Assistance Centers on Tuesday, one at Andersen Air Force Base and one at Naval Base Guam.

Almost 100 Red Cross disaster responders are helping on the islands now and as many as 70 more are making the 20+hour trip to help. They are working side by side with local volunteers from the Guam and CNMI Red Cross chapters to support people in need. Red Cross disaster teams are working with partners to support efforts to get tents restored, and households stabilized with food, emergency supplies, and health & mental health services.

THIRD TIME SINCE APRIL Champi is the third typhoon to hit the islands in just the last six months, people unable to recover due to the constant onslaught of devastating weather.

The region was first slammed by Super Typhoon Sinlaku on April 14. Then, on July 6, Super Typhoon Bavi made landfall on Rota as the strongest storm in the island’s history, while damaging winds swept across Guam, Tinian and Saipan. The back-to-back storms left a trail of devastation, and many people are still trying to rebuild their lives and homes.

Guam is the largest single island in the Mariana chain, with over 150,000 residents. The CNMI spans the 14 islands north of Guam with a smaller population of around 50,000 mostly living on Saipan, Tinian and Rota.

RECOVERING EMOTIONALLY Disasters are upsetting for everyone they touch. Children, senior citizens, people with disabilities and people for whom English is not their first language are especially at risk and may need extra care. Everyone deserves support throughout the recovery process. If you or a loved one needs help, call or text the free 24/7 Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800- 985-5990. More information is available here.

HOW YOU CAN HELP People look to the Red Cross for help during these devastating emergencies and we can’t do it alone. You can help by making a financial donation to support Red Cross Disaster Relief, or by becoming a volunteer.

Typhoon Champi comes on the heels of Hurricane Isaias, which made landfall in Florida just days ago and where people are still recovering. While the Atlantic has been relatively quiet so far this year, the Pacific has been extremely active. Champi is the third typhoon to hit Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands and hurricanes named Lala and Lowell left damage behind in Hawaii.

Other major disasters upended lives across the country. Devastating wildfires in Southern California, catastrophic flooding in Texas, Typhoon Halong in Alaska ─ all left communities reeling. Through it all, the American Red Cross was there. The generous support of our donors is critical to our ability to help people in need.

You can help people affected by disasters like storms, floods 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. We invite you to get involved by visiting redcross.org/volunteer. The Guam and CNMI chapters invite you to support your community by registering as a volunteer with your local chapter. Guam Chapter, (671) 472-6217 CNMI Chapter, (670) 234-3459.

POWER OUTAGE SAFETY Follow these steps while the power is out:

• Use flashlights or battery-operated lanterns — not candles — to help avoid fires.
• Don’t drive unless necessary. Traffic lights will be out, and roads could be congested.
• Decide if you need to leave if your home is too hot or cold, or if you have medical devices that need power.
• Check with loved ones and neighbors to see if they need help.

To prevent illness, keep food cold. When in doubt, throw it out.

• Eat fresh, perishable foods first.
• Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to help keep food cold. Use coolers with ice if necessary.
• Measure the temperature in your refrigerator and freezer with a thermometer. Throw out perishable food that has been warmer than 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you’re using a generator, keep it dry and don’t use it in wet conditions.

• Carbon monoxide kills. If you start to feel sick, dizzy or weak, get to fresh air right away.
• Never use a generator, grill, camp stove or other gasoline, propane, natural gas or charcoal burning device inside a home, garage, basement or other partially enclosed area. Keep this type of equipment outside and away from doors, windows and vents.
• Plug appliances directly into the generator. Never plug a generator into a wall outlet.
• Operate the generator on a dry surface and don’t touch it with wet hands

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder Program Members, the Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. These members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables us to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by disaster, regardless of cost. Right now, the Red Cross is on the ground and taking action with the support of our valuable members. 

Mission Leader Members: Amazon; American Airlines; Bank of America; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; The Coca-Cola Foundation; Costco Wholesale; 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; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Mastercard; McDonald’s Corporation; Merck; Nationwide Foundation; PetSmart Charities; The Pfizer Foundation; Ralph Lauren; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda; Truist Foundation; USAA; Verizon; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; Wells Fargo Foundation

ADGP Members: 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; Honda; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; PayPal; The PG&E Corporation Foundation; Stryker; Suburban Propane; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco; Wingstop Restaurants; The Winn-Dixie Company; Zoetis Foundation

Disaster Responder Program Members: 3M; 4Change Energy; 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe Foundation; The AES Corporation; Aflac; American Family Insurance; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AstraZeneca; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works; Blue Cross Blue Shield Association; Build-A-Bear Foundation; Canadian National Railway; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Cisco Systems, Inc. and Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; CSX; The Deluxe Foundation; DENSO North America Foundation; DHL Supply Chain; DICK'S Sporting Goods Foundation; Dollar General; Dollar Tree; Duke Energy; Dutch Bros Coffee; Edward Jones; Eli Lilly and Company Foundation; Enbridge; Equitable ; Erie Insurance; Farmers Insurance®; Fastenal; GEICO Philanthropic Foundation; Grainger; HP Foundation; International Paper; 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; Microsoft; Mutual of Omaha Foundation; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Nike Foundation; Norfolk Southern; Northrop Grumman Foundation; Northwestern Mutual; Old Dominion Freight Line; Old Republic; Pacific Life Foundation; PepsiCo Foundation; Phillips 66; Pilot Company; Prudential; QBE Foundation; Qualcomm; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reynolds American Inc.; RGA Foundation; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Salesforce; Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Communities; Santander; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Sunbelt Rentals; T-Mobile; Tata Consultancy Services; Tennant Company; Toyota Tsusho America, Inc.; U-Haul International; Uber; Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation; United States Steel; US Foods; Westlake Corporation; Yum! Brands; Zurich