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Sunday, December 23, 2001 . Posted: 02:33:57 (AEDT)
Super typhoon heading for US islands
One of the fiercest storms ever seen, Super Typhoon Faxai, is heading for a Christmas Eve hit on the US Pacific islands of Guam and Saipan, weather authorities said. Guam, which has been a crucial air and naval stepping stone in the Afghan war, was on civil defence alert. Faxai has lingered as a storm and then typhoon, bringing winds and rain to Pohnpei and Korsae in the Federated States of Micronesia.
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) said that it had begun to rapidly intensify and was declared a super typhoon. It is currently sitting about 1,120 kilometres east of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands and is expected to be just off Saipan on Christmas Eve.
Faxai is currently packing winds at its centre of 250 kilometres per hour, but JTWC warned by within a day, it will have sustained winds of 268 kph, gusting to 324 kph by Monday. Satellite imagery of Faxai shows a daunting storm with a distinctive 26-kilometre eye.
Rapid preparations
Joe Javellana of Guam's Office of Civil Defence said officials were checking facilities were secured and equipment covered.
Thirteen public schools also have been designated as typhoon shelters. "I think with the help of the media getting out the word to the public during the typhoon, we can be able to get them prepared," Mr Javellana said.
"We don't want to give them any type of false sense of anxiety. We just want them to be prepared."
Frequent occurrence
That part of the world is used to super typhoons.
In October one of the strongest storms ever recorded swept across the north pacific largely unnoticed. Super Typhoon Podul, which travelled around Wake Island, sustained winds of 240 kph, gusting to 296 kph. Super Typhoon Paka hit Guam in 1997 and is regarded by JTWC as one of the strongest, while Karen in 1962 is believed to have been even stronger, but accurate records are not available. During Paka it is believed the world's strongest gust may have been reached when Andersen Air Force Base on Guam logged 380 kph but the equipment was destroyed.
Fiji cyclone watch
And across the equator, experts were monitoring a major storm north-east of Fiji which they fear will turn into a cyclone shortly and hit that Pacific nation over Christmas. The JTWC in Hawaii has not declared that storm a cyclone yet, but the Fiji Meteorological Service has issued strong wind and heavy rain and thunderstorm warnings.
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