Born in a typhoon: Many, including newborns, remain without electricity as Guam recovers from storm

HONOLULU — About a week after Typhoon Mawar tore through Guam as the strongest typhoon to hit the U.S. Pacific territory in over two decades, most of the island remained without electricity and the governor appealed for patience during a recovery process expected to take at least a month.

Even though Mawar caused no deaths or catastrophic destruction, officials said that as of Wednesday only 28% of power had been restored on the oppressively hot and humid island. About 44% of cell towers were functional Wednesday and about half the water system was operational, Bob Fenton, regional administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency told The Associated Press via phone from Guam.

Mawar briefly made landfall as a Category 4 storm late on May 24 on the northern tip of the island of roughly 150,000 people, flipping cars, tearing off roofs and leaving trees bare.

There have been long lines for gas and officials estimate it will be four to six weeks before power is fully restored. FEMA did not yet know exactly how many homes were destroyed. High school graduations were indefinitely postponed across Guam.