Islanders call for urgent aid

– Authorities in the Northern Mariana Islands called for urgent supplies and equipment yesterday and were preparing for weeks without power after being hit by their most powerful typhoon in half a century, killing one woman and causing widespread destruction.

Super Typhoon Yutu, a category five storm, struck the US Western Pacific territory overnight on Wednesday, pulling down hundreds of electricity poles, damaging homes and commercial properties and the international airport on Saipan, located about 6 000km west of Hawaii.

On the island of Tinian, which took a direct hit, the mayor asked for machetes and chainsaws to help clear debris and urged residents to be patient as emergency supplies had not arrived.

With winds of about 270kph, Yutu was the strongest typhoon seen in the archipelago since 1968, according to governor Ralph Torres.

He said a woman in Saipan had been killed. US health secretary Alex Azar declared a public health emergency.