Tropical Storm in Guam, May 21 to 25, 2003

Name: Tropical Storm in Guam, May 21 to 25, 2003
Start: 2003-05-21T00:00
End: 2003-05-25T00:00
Location: Guam

May 21 to 25, 2003 · NWS GUA · 1 event in 1 county or zone

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $18 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS GUA wrote it up.

On the morning of the 17th a circulation was noted on the monsoon trough about 500 miles southwest of Chuuk. Over the next few days the circulation gradually strengthened and was upgraded to Tropical Depression 04W at 1300 on the 19th when it was located 200 miles west-southwest of Chuuk. Further intensification occurred during the 19th and the system became a tropical storm by the evening, it was located 125 miles west-southwest of Chuuk at that time. West to southwest winds of 30 to 35 mph with a gust to 48 mph was reported at the NWS Office in Chuuk at 0535 on the morning of the 21st A gust to 53 mph at 1739 later on the 21st. The tropical storm was 175 miles to the northwest of Chuuk and moving away during the evening of the 21st. The winds began to subside after midnight on the 22nd, however a shower band moved across the island between 1800 to 2400. A wind gust to 48 mph from the west was reported at 1907 in these showers. These winds over Chuuk caused the sinking of the 1040 ton fishing vessel Nien Feioch (Chuukese for blessed lady). The strong winds generated waves, which pounded the ship against a concrete dock. This pounding broke chunks off the concrete dock and also knocked some holes in the ship. After a night of constant pounding the ship capsized, her lookout tower collapsing on the dock. Afterfurther damage from the waves the ship turned herself belly up. The dock was littered with broken cement and other debris. The ship was valued at $16 million.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS GUA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 20, 3:39 PM SST, 8 hours 21 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 20, 3:39 PM SST, 8 hours 21 minutes before

AREA SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TIYAN GU
1 PM GUAM LST WED MAY 21 2003

WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC BETWEEN EQUATOR AND 25N FROM 130E TO 180.

TROPICAL STORM CHAN-HOM IS CENTERED NEAR 8N150E...MOVING NORTHWEST
AT 5 MPH WITH MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS OF 65 MPH. SEE WTPN32 PGTW
FROM THE JOINT TYPHOON WARNING CENTER FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

HEAVY RAINS AND THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH CHAN-HOM ARE LOCATED
WITHIN 90 MILES OF THE CENTER. CONVERGING FLOW INTO TROPICAL STORM
CHAN-HOM IS GENERATING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS
ACROSS YAP AND CHUUK STATES BETWEEN THE EQUATOR AND 13N FROM 137E TO
154E.

A MONSOON TROUGH EXTENDS FROM THE REMAINS OF TROPICAL DEPRESSION 03W
NEAR 13N129E EAST-SOUTHEASTWARD THROUGH TROPICAL STORM CHAN-HOM TO
10N155E TO 7N160E TO THE EQUATOR AT 155E. SCATTERED SHOWERS ALONG
THE TROUGH ARE OCCURRING NORTH OF PALAU BETWEEN 10N AND 13N FROM
133E TO 136E AND WITHIN 50 MILES OF THE TROUGH AXIS EAST OF 154E IN
POHNPEI STATE.

FURTHER EAST...LOW-LEVEL CONVERGENCE IS GENERATING SCATTERED SHOWERS
AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE MARSHALL ISLANDS BETWEEN 6N
AND 14N FROM 163E TO 176E.

Event by event

1 tropical storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Tropical Storm, Micronesia

When: May 21, 12:00 AM SST to May 25, 12:00 AM SST
Where: Micronesia forecast zone
Property damage: $18 million
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

What these are

Tropical Storm: A tropical cyclone with sustained winds of 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph).

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Guam in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Guam, May 2003 The 2003 hurricane season

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5355988.