Flash Flood — Manu'a, American Samoa

2023-05-17 · near Ta'u, Manu'a, American Samoa

$250K

Property damage

Event narrative

Emergency Management reported a landslide due to heavy rainfall between the villages of Fitiuta and village of Ta'u on the island of Ta'u during the early morning hours of May 17th. The landslide caused large boulders to topple over the only road that connects the two villages. Heavy rainfall also cause erosion underneath the road to create significant damage to the roadway making it impassible. There were no injuries.

Wider weather episode

A strong trough moved over the American Samoa islands on May 17th to cause widespread flash flooding in the region. The highest amount of rainfall recorded was from an ASPA (American Samoa Power Authority) weather station, which recorded 9.10 inches of rainfall at Fagaitua throughout the day. The majority of this rainfall came between 100 and 700SST. WSO Pago Pago received 2.83 inches during this time.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (-14.2139, -169.4675)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1093389. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.