By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
“How safe are we on Guam? That’s the question that keeps coming up, right?” said Melissa Savares, mayor of Dededo.
A linchpin to U.S. homeland defense, Guam is a magnet for China’s offense.
Despite the U.S. military’s repeated reassurances that Guam is adequately equipped to confront any potential conflict, Savares can’t just shake off her apprehensions. “That's always going to be a concern because we live here. We are residents of Guam. We're not going to move because of this,” she said.
During the open house organized by the Missile Defense Agency at the Dededo Community Center on July 25, Savares tried to absorb the scope of the proposed flight tests for the Guam missile defense system, weighing the conflicting sense of security and uncertainty. “Of course, they have done it in the past. There have been tests in different countries,” she said. “But what if it backfires?”
As the mayor of Guam’s most populated village with 44,900 people, Savares has a lot to think about. Her village is home to the military’s third installation on island, the Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz, which will be home to 5,000 Marines and approximately 9,000 dependents, who will be relocated from Okinawa. The first tranche of the Marines is scheduled to arrive by the end of the year, around the same time the first flight test for the missile defense system is proposed to launch.
Topping her concerns is the housing situation. The increased military presence on Guam has influenced the real estate market, jacking up rental home prices and pushing home purchases beyond affordable for most island residents.
“For a first-time homeowner, just a two-bedroom being sold here in our village costs over $200,000. New homeowners can't afford that,” said Savares, who has been the village’s mayor since 2004.
“Young homeowners have to go on some kind of housing subsidy—unless you have a very good job. But even the educated people who have their master's degrees sometimes can’t get the job that they want. So to make that kind of income to buy a $400,000 or $500,000 home is almost impossible,” she added.
The possibility of another war is painful to visualize, Savares said. Where do residents run for cover in the event of a missile attack that may evade interception? There are no bomb shelters on Guam.
“That's a discussion that we've had in our community. I hear residents talking about building shelters on their properties,” she said. “They can build at least an 8x8 shelter just for them and their families to go into. But can we really afford to do that?”
With her own family to think about as well, Savares contemplates building an underground basement on the side of her house.
But at this point, the mayor said, preparing for survival is a luxury that competes with the residents’ immediate needs to live. “I mean, families are building homes so they can live together or live in an affordable house,” she said. “And if we're going to build downwards, a bunker, a shelter, instead of a home for us to live in, then that will defeat the purpose of us choosing to live here on Guam as our primary home.”
There are only a few remaining WWII survivors who might have learned how to navigate the aftermath of war. For the current generation, it’s unchartered territory. Guam residents just have to learn what to do in the face of lingering threats. “There's no guarantee on anything,” Savares said.
Guam has had a safety drill of sorts when North Korea threatened to bomb the island in 2017. “You're just supposed to shelter in place. You have 14 minutes to hurry up to run into a building,” Savares said. “I want my grandchildren to live for a longer time so they can enjoy what we've had the opportunity to enjoy.”
Guam officials have claimed that the island’s concrete buildings can provide safety shelters. “But are we really protected? We don't know,” Savares said.
Amid her misgivings, Savares seeks to comfort herself with the thought that the U.S. won't allow Guam to be annihilated. “They have partners and alliances within the region, in parts of Asia,” she said. “Before the enemy could reach the island, the military has the Seventh Fleet out there to protect us.”
And if protection is not guaranteed? Savares resorts to the islander’s fatalism. “We leave it up to God. Yeah, that's pretty much our drama,” she said.
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