Power and water restoration are advancing across the CNMI, though crews continued to face setbacks caused by moisture‑damaged engines, tripped feeders and storm‑related distribution issues following Super Typhoon Bavi, according to the Joint Information Center.
CUC reported that Saipan’s power system remains in the “restoration phase,” noting that “there may be weak points in the system that can fail as additional areas are energized.” Crews are prioritizing critical infrastructure including water wells, wastewater facilities, shelters, the airport and the hospital.
Saipan Power
Saipan saw the largest gains, with multiple feeders and Kiya circuits energized throughout Wednesday. Moisture from heavy rainfall continued to limit the ability to bring additional engines online, slowing capacity increases at the power plant.
By Wednesday afternoon, primary lines on Feeder 7 and Feeder 1 were online, along with Kiya 1, 2, 3 and 4 partials. The report noted that Kiya 1 and Kiya 4 experienced trips but were re‑energized later in the day. .
Tinian Power
Tinian’s grid remained unstable, with repeated trips overnight and into Wednesday afternoon. Power was restored to portions of San Jose Village, including the health center, the shelter at Tinian Elementary School, and several businesses. But outages persisted in Marpo Heights, West Tinian Airport, Carolinas Heights and the booster pump area due to damage requiring assessment and repair.
“At 2:30 p.m., power tripped again,” the report said, noting crews isolated affected areas before restoring service at 2:44 p.m.
Rota Power
Rota’s power situation remained unchanged since July 6. The island has been under an islandwide outage since July 5 at 10 p.m., with all 967 customers offline. “Emergency protective measures” required shutting down the power plant gensets before Bavi’s arrival.
Saipan Water
Water restoration on Saipan continued to improve as more wells came online. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, “approximately 60% of CUC water wells are on the power grid,” allowing 24‑hour service for the airport, Capitol Hill TSA and portions of the Calhoun Tank Service Area.
Most other tank service areas — including Isley, Kagman, As Matuis/Marpi, Puerto Rico, Rapagao, San Vicente, Dandan, Kannat Tabla, As Terlaje and Gualo Rai — were receiving water based on available supply.
Tinian Water
Tinian’s water system remained fully online, though Maui 2 well continued operating on backup generators. Some customers may experience low pressure due to possible leaks. The island has 861 water customers, 679 of them residential.
Rota Water
Rota’s water system remained offline as part of emergency measures to fill the 0.5‑million‑gallon tank. The transmission system has been down since July 4 due to a leak, and repairs are pending shipment of materials and staff. Two emergency wells — SP1 and SP3 — are filling the tank, which is now over 50% full. A boil‑water notice remains in effect.
