Overview
Super Typhoon Bavi made landfall over Rota in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands on the morning of Monday, July 6, 2026, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone on record to strike U.S. territory, according to the National Weather Service office in Guam and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center.
The storm reached Category 5 strength on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale as it crossed the Mariana Island chain. The National Weather Service said sustained winds near Bavi’s eyewall reached 180 mph, with gusts as high as 215 mph. The eye passed directly over Rota, an island with a population of about 2,000 people, around 8 a.m. local time before the storm continued toward Guam, Tinian and Saipan. The islands sit roughly 3,800 miles west of Hawaii and 1,550 miles east of the Philippines. Ahead of landfall, Guam opened evacuation centers across the territory, and Governor Lou Leon Guerrero urged residents to avoid travel and remain indoors until conditions improved.
Bavi stronger than previous 2018 record
Bavi’s landfall winds surpass those of Typhoon Yutu, which struck Tinian in October 2018 with sustained winds of 178 mph and had stood as the strongest storm on record to hit U.S. soil. Guam’s historically most destructive typhoon, Karen, struck in November 1962 with winds up to 185 mph and destroyed about 95% of homes on the island at the time.
Typhoon Mawar, a Category 4 storm, caused extensive damage across Guam in May 2023. Bavi’s Category 5 intensity makes it the most powerful tropical cyclone on record to affect the Mariana Islands, surpassing Yutu. As Bavi moves away from the Mariana Islands, strong winds may gradually diminish through Monday night as the storm exits the region, though rough surf and localized flooding risks are expected to persist for several days.
Cotality will continue to monitor the system’s track for potential effects on Japan, Taiwan and China later this week.
