By Emily Mae Czachor
Updated on: April 14, 2026 / 10:16 PM EDT / CBS News
Typhoon Sinlaku — the strongest tropical cyclone on Earth so far this year — smashed into the remote U.S. islands of Tinian and Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands early Wednesday local time, bringing extremely powerful winds and heavy rain that residents said tore tin roofs from homes.
The National Weather Service reported Sinlaku had sustained winds up to 150 mph — a strong Category 4 — when it struck Tinian and Saipan. By 11 a.m. local time Wednesday, maximum sustained winds had fallen to 130 mph as the storm began tracking north. Forecasters expect it to continue weakening over the next few days while passing west of Alamagan, Pagan and Agrihan later in the week.
“This felt like the strongest yet,” Glen Hunter, who grew up on Saipan, told The Associated Press. Hunter said he watched at least three tin roofs fly past his yard and that rain was seeping into every crevice of his concrete house. “It was a losing battle because the rain was coming through everywhere. Every house is just flooded with water, no matter what type of structure you’re in.”
Saipan Mayor Ramon “RB” Jose Blas Camacho told The Associated Press Sinlaku was “hitting us hard.” He said heavy rain and wind made rescue efforts difficult, with trees toppled and wooden and tin structures collapsing. Some residents were rescued, he said, but flooding and flying debris posed ongoing hazards.
Video shared by AP as the storm approached showed fierce winds and rain hitting Saipan while Sinlaku lingered offshore. The typhoon stalled roughly 30 miles off the archipelago for several hours before coming ashore, raising concern about prolonged exposure to destructive winds and sustained rainfall.
Guam, a U.S. territory with about 170,000 residents and three military bases, reported tropical-force winds and torrential rain, causing flash flooding. The National Weather Service recorded wind gusts up to 88 mph Tuesday night, with consistent gusts between 70 and 80 mph through the night. Guam’s Joint Information Center warned that damaging winds would persist and urged residents to stay indoors and avoid the water.
Guam’s Department of Education closed schools Tuesday and Wednesday; officials said schools would remain shut until the governor declares conditions safe. The information center also reported multiple power outages across the island attributed to the typhoon.
Typhoon warnings were in effect Tuesday evening for several Marianas islands, including Rota, Tinian, Saipan, Alamagan, Pagan and Agrihan. Guam remained under a tropical storm warning and typhoon watch.
In the Pacific basin, “typhoon” describes what would be called a “hurricane” in the Atlantic and eastern Pacific; storms with sustained winds above 150 mph are classified as “super typhoons.” Sinlaku once reached maximum winds of 180 mph over open ocean on Sunday, making it the most powerful storm to form so far this year, surpassing earlier typhoons Narelle and Dudzai.
Ahead of the storm, President Trump approved emergency disaster declarations for Guam and the Mariana Islands on Sunday.
Sinlaku underwent an eyewall replacement cycle as a super typhoon, CBS News meteorologist Nikki Nolan said. Radar indicated a new eyewall formed around the original, which then collapsed and expanded. Eyewall replacement cycles are common in the most intense tropical cyclones and often lead to temporary weakening and a slower forward speed — a process Nolan described as the storm “burning itself out.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.