GPA crews ordered to stand down as of 5 a.m. due to unsafe conditions

High winds knocked out power all across the island.

Guam Power Authority said its crews responded as long as they could, but just before 5 a.m. all personnel were called in from the field as it was no longer safe for them to be out.

Assessments and repairs will resume once the high winds subside. GPA said the islandwide power system was not shut down, but service automatically cuts out when there is damage to individual circuits.

General Manager John Benavente said the system has hardened significantly since past major storms.

Now more than 90 percent of wooden power poles have been replaced with concrete, and many areas also have utility cables buried underground.