Hurricane in Guam, November 2, 1997

Typhoon Keith passed north of Pohnpei on the 31st of October. The typhoon continued to move in a northwestward direction and rain in advance of the typhoon began falling across the Marianas Islands on the morning of the 2nd. The storm passed through the channel that is between Rota and Tinian during the late afternoon of the 2nd. Closest point of approach of the eye of the storm to Rota was 21 miles to the east-northeast, 37 miles south-southeast of Tinian, 46 miles south of Saipan and 90 miles north of Guam. Winds on Tinian reached 69 mph with gust to 81 mph. At least 24 houses were destroyed with 109 others receiving major damage and 47 minor damage. 4 businesses received major damage and another 8 had minor damage. Electricity was knocked out over the whole island. On Saipan, maximum sustained winds from the typhoon were 98 mph with gust to 109 mph. 130 houses were destroyed. 436 additional homes had major damage and 226 were left with minor damage. Electricity was knocked out over the whole island. On Rota, winds reached 58 mph with gust to 81 mph. One house was destroyed with an additional 7 receiving major damage and 5 with minor damage.The strongest winds reported across Guam were 41 mph with gust to 63 mph. There were scattered power outages across Guam. The strong surf pushed some rocks and debris onto roads along the southern shore of the island. Minor crop damage was reported on Guam. This came mainly from wind damage and also from small scale flooding.