SAIPAN — Plant 1 Diesel Engine 1 went offline at approximately 7:55 p.m. May 2, just one day after coming online to add 5.5 megawatts to the Saipan grid, according to JIC Update 023 issued Sunday. The setback came hours after Feeder 1 to the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. hospital went offline at 12:15 a.m. May 2 and CHCC’s emergency backup generator failed at 3:30 a.m., requiring CUC to spin up Power Plant 4 Diesel Engine 10 to keep the hospital running.
The hospital was re-energized by approximately 5 a.m. by PP4, which peaked at 1 megawatt and produced 10,044 kWh on May 2. CUC said the cause of the Feeder 1 outage remains under investigation.
Saipan power remains at 100 percent offline. Tinian power remains at 100 percent offline. Rota is at normal operations with eight customers still out due to individual infrastructure damage.
Power
Plant 3’s backup generator produced 2,837 kWh on May 2, up from 2,545 kWh the previous day. Coordination with Aggreko continues to begin synchronization with PP4 prior to taking on additional electrical load. Wall repair work to prevent water ingress into Plant 1 switchgear is 85 percent complete.
A total of 101 of 624 downed power poles have been replaced. Customer outages remain at 15,624 including 11,769 residential accounts. EPA and FEMA hazardous material cleanup of damaged transformers continues, with 46 transformers retrieved as of April 30.
CUC began energization of Lower Base, Garapan from Beach Road between Hotel Street and the former Atkins Kroll, and Middle Road from Lower Miha to IT&E Oleai at 7:30 a.m. Sunday. The agency warned residents on generator or solar power in those areas to turn off their main circuit breakers immediately.
On Tinian, all feeders remain offline with 1,059 customers out. Down power poles total 111. Down transformers total 55, revised from the April 29 figure of 60. The Rota line crew of five staff continues to assist with restoration.
Water
Saipan water remains at 49 percent customer access, with 4,311 of 8,758 customers served. Of 138 wells and facilities, 80 are online: 25 connected to the CUC power grid and 32 on CUC generators. The boil water notice remains in effect.
The Capitol Hill, Puerto Rico, Chalan Kanoa and Tuturam-San Vicente water filling stations remain open daily. The Koblerville and Kagman filling stations remain closed.
Tinian water remains 98 percent online with the boil notice in effect. Rota water remains 100 percent restored with the boil notice lifted April 22.
Shelters
The shelter population is 418 across nine sites on Saipan and two on Tinian.
Health
CHCC mobile medical clinics, in partnership with Samaritan’s Purse and Team Rubicon, have delivered 542 visits as of May 1.
Federal Assistance
The CNMI Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, in coordination with FEMA and non-profit partners, will run three Commodity Points of Distribution on Saipan this week, distributing bottled water and Meals Ready to Eat. The Airport Field site opens May 4 at 9 a.m. The Koblerville Youth Center site opens May 6 at 9 a.m. The Garapan Fishing Base site opens May 8 at 9 a.m. All distributions run until supplies last.
Free potable water remains available daily at Paupau Beach and Hopwood Middle School from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with a limit of 100 gallons per vehicle.
The DCCA Nutrition Assistance Program received USDA approval for emergency waivers, providing all active April 2026 NAP recipients with a 63 percent automatic benefit replacement, with funds credited to EBT cards within five to 10 business days. NAP benefits can also be used to purchase hot, prepared foods from authorized retailers through May 27.
Education
The CNMI Public School System will begin grab-and-go meal distribution for students Monday, May 4. Meals will be available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. while supplies last across designated sites on Saipan, Tinian and Rota. Students must present a valid school ID to receive meals, with one meal set per ID. Vehicles without IDs will be limited to two meal sets. Private school and Head Start students are also eligible.
Northern Marianas College is ending the Spring 2026 term early in response to recovery. NMC has activated a student hotline at (670) 285-2059 or 7651, available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Northern Marianas Technical Institute will suspend Spring classes until late June, with selected staff returning Monday and all staff returning Wednesday for campus cleanup following flooding.
Aviation
United Airlines will suspend its Narita-Saipan route from May 7 through July 10. Daily Guam-Saipan service continues, arriving 8:50 a.m. and departing 9:55 a.m. Saipan International Airport remains limited to daytime operations only due to damaged navigational aids. One of six loading bridges is operational, with a second under repair.
Public Transportation
The Commonwealth Office of Transit Authority has completed 503 emergency transports between April 10 and May 3. Call-A-Ride Rota and Call-A-Ride Tinian are fully operational. Call-A-Ride Saipan remains limited to essential trips. Fixed Route Blue Line 1B operates Sunday through Saturday from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.