KSPN2 News July 22, 2026

[00:00:12][music] [music] >> Tonight's headlines are brought to you by McDonald's and Mariana's Coffee.

[00:00:26]>> Good evening, Commonwealth, and thanks for watching the Channel 2 News. I'm Dan Shore.

[00:00:31]>> And I'm Sagrario Halstead. Let's take a look at tonight's top stories.

[00:00:35]>> An individual was discovered in the decomposing stage near a family compound.

[00:00:42]>> Also tonight, the Senate [music] passes funding appropriation for the retirees of the Commonwealth.

[00:00:49]>> And a new book chronicling the philosophical and economic [music] conditions of our islands has been released.

[00:00:58]>> In sports, a badminton line judge will head to Egypt to represent the NMI on the world stage.

[00:01:04]>> Stay with us, CNMI. [music] These stories and more are next.

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[00:02:39]>> [music] [music] >> Hafa Adai and Tero. On behalf of the Northern Mariana's Humanities Council, you're invited [music] to join us for your Humanities Half Hour, Thursdays at 7:00 p.m. here on KSPN2.

[00:02:59]We take a look [music] at the humanities issues of interest to you and our community. Join us as we navigate the human experience together on Your Humanities Half Hour, [music] Thursdays and replayed on Saturdays at 7:00 p.m.

[00:03:15]and on YouTube at 670 Humanities.

[00:03:26]>> [music] [music] >> Hafa Adai Tirow Wami and good evening Commonwealth.

[00:04:05]>> You're watching the Channel 2 News on July the 22nd from our studios high up on Capitol Hill.

[00:04:12]>> A decomposed body was discovered this week. DPS has still yet to weigh in with information. For now, we hear from the Emergency Medical Service response side of DFEMS.

[00:04:24]A deceased individual was identified at a family compound along the airport road area on Monday, July 20th. Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Public Information Officer Robert Mojica says the DFEMS team stepped in for a protocol assessment.

[00:04:39]>> So, on on Monday there was a report of a deceased individual.

[00:04:43]Um for DFEMS part, we did show up on scene. We did assist the DPS with them properly, you know, identifying and saying that yes, the the patient is deceased. Uh but now I believe the CST, the crime scene technicians and DPS, they're going to be the ones doing the preliminary report and you know, once they have all their findings in the investigation, they're going to let you guys know, you know, what what happened and what the cause was and all that.

[00:05:06]>> Mojica says as some social media posts may include inaccurate information about the location, he clarifies the details.

[00:05:13]>> So, from what I received from dispatch, the location is airport road behind the Skyway old Skyway Cafe. Um I believe it's a family compound. I I don't want to say the family name cuz I'm not sure if they're going to if they're not comfortable with that. So, I just know it's a family compound that's behind that that area. That's what we were told from us from dispatch and DPS.

[00:05:35]>> Okay. And then because this was a deceased individual, was this something that was was immediate or was this something decomposing or >> I believe it was a but I'm not sure how many days or how long. Uh I don't have the the right information. I know the DPS will be the ones to shoot that out, but it was a confirmed decomp.

[00:05:56]>> This is an active investigation under the Department of Public Safety.

[00:06:01]>> On Monday afternoon, a special Senate session focuses not on approving COC loan approvals as expected, but on funding retirees pension plans.

[00:06:14]The Senate meets on Monday afternoon to authorize funds aimed at securing the retirees pension plan allocations through the fiscal year. Floor leader Donald Manglona.

[00:06:26]>> Last on our bill calendar, we have House Bill 24-84 to authorize the expenditure of $2,105,563 identified by the governor as a surplus from fiscal year 2025 revenues that shall be appropriated by the legislature to the public school system and to the 25% retirees pension obligation.

[00:06:50]I move first passage.

[00:06:53]>> In a year where funds are scarce, Senate President Carl King Neighbors.

[00:06:58]>> Uh the meeting that we had regarding this funding source that you all attended was was very helpful for us and very enlightening. Uh We [snorts] do know that times are hard for everybody, of course.

[00:07:12]It hits It hits the retirees very differently as um many of you don't have another revenue stream to tap into to deal with all of the uh increases and adjustments and commodities and fuel um in CUC. Uh this is not lost on us. Uh all of us in here have retirees, whether they're directly our parents, um aunties and uncles. This This isn't This isn't a us versus you thing. It This is really an effort for us to try to help get the funds that you need in your pockets.

[00:07:48]>> With that, the Senate passes the bill and sends it to the house for approval.

[00:07:53]>> Roadways on Rota are cleared after typhoon debris causes blockage. The secretary of DPW says there's more work ahead.

[00:08:02]The Department of Public Works sent crews over from Saipan to Rota to help recovery efforts following Super Typhoon Bavi. After asking the team in Saipan for volunteers, DPW Secretary Ray Yumol says he sent a team of 16 staff members along with a mechanic and an engineer.

[00:08:18]>> Part of the effort, we flew down last week and we basically were asked to open up Route 100, which is the back road of Rota. So, this is a portion of roadway that is federally recognized.

[00:08:36]So, we began in this point roughly and we worked our way towards Sinapalo Village.

[00:08:43]>> He shares that at the request of the mayor of Rota, Aubrey Hocog, main roadways around the island were cleared.

[00:08:49]Yumol says all the road debris and blockages have been successfully cleaned up from Route 100.

[00:08:55]>> This section alone was over 6 miles and we did this by um literally walking the the roadway.

[00:09:03]>> After Route 100, road clearing continued around the island.

[00:09:07]>> The mayor also asked us uh to uh uh do route clearing all the way from Sinapalo to Dugi Homestead, which we did.

[00:09:17]And we did that in about a day and we were successful. So, uh this was basically day two of our trip to Rota.

[00:09:26]And then uh the final two days we uh cleared um debris from Sinapalo following Route 10 down to Songsong, we stopped short at about um the Pinatang Beach Park uh because it it was uh um major challenge because we had a lot of sand deposited from the storm. So, in some areas we had about 10 in of sand.

[00:10:03]>> Although the route was opened up and made safe for travel, Yumul says the work is not yet finished. Clearing culverts are made a priority to prevent any further damages.

[00:10:12]>> Uh the debris piles, the sand is still there.

[00:10:16]Uh the culverts, there are about 10 culverts along route 100. Uh they are still clogged up with Typhoon debris, so uh I do have an engineer on island on Rota that's assessing the culverts. So, um when he gets back, he's going to give me his uh estimate of the amount of work that needs to be done so that we can clear out those culverts.

[00:10:40]>> He says the next step for DPW following the approval of the presidential major disaster declaration is to develop a temporary debris staging and reduction site.

[00:10:50]>> Uh once we're ready to go back for recovery, the plan is to develop a a TDSR site just like what you see up in Asgonno. And the purpose is so that we can collect all the Typhoon debris uh on island and process it for um um reduction and then to ship it out or incinerate or shred.

[00:11:17]>> For the residents of Rota, more information is to follow when residential debris cleanup becomes activated.

[00:11:26]A collision in the village of Finasisu yesterday sends a woman to the hospital.

[00:11:32]A motor vehicle accident occurred yesterday morning along Monsignor Guerrero Road. Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Public Information Officer Robert Mojica says the operator of the vehicle is a female and the operator of the heavy equipment truck is a male. He shares the time frames of the incident.

[00:11:49]>> We had a motor vehicle accident across the street from Twin Supermarket Finacisu. At 07:27 we had a call come in at 07:30 we had engine four medic four left the Colberyville fire station got on scene about 07:34.

[00:12:05]There was one patient that was transported to the hospital.

[00:12:09]I think the chief complaint from the medics was a right shoulder pain. No no fatalities or anything too serious. The other patient was a patient refusal. He didn't have any injuries or anything sustained to him.

[00:12:19]And then yep at 7:30 7:46 the patient was transported to the female driver of the other vehicle was transported to the hospital.

[00:12:26]>> Mojica says that the Department of Public Safety is doing a preliminary investigation in what caused the incident.

[00:12:33]>> Yesterday on his birthday Saipan's Vin Armani celebrates the passage of time but also and more significantly the release of his new book.

[00:12:46]>> A mentor of mine once told me as a man gets older his desire changes from having a life of success to having a life of significance.

[00:12:55]And that's been very true for me.

[00:12:57]>> Vin Armani's fourth book is a compilation of essays originating from right here on Saipan chronicling the philosophical, spiritual, and economic condition of our islands and the country with whom we are in common.

[00:13:13]>> The book is the vineyard and the vessel leadership at the end of the empire.

[00:13:17]>> So I'm going to say that Saipan is the end of the empire. Am I correct?

[00:13:21]>> Yes, so it is Saipan is the jumping off point. The Northern Mariana's specifically Saipan though, is the jumping-off point. And by end of the empire, I actually mean it in two ways. So, both the physical end of the empire, because of course the Marianas is uh by distance the farthest, let's say, possession or flagged um jurisdiction of the United States.

[00:13:49]So, the furthest from Washington, D.C.

[00:13:52]But then also, I make an argument in the book that we are at the end of the empire in a temporal way. So, meaning actually like this is the empire is ending. Uh and that there's a pattern that has been reflected over and over and over again throughout history of what it looks like when an empire ends. And the place that you see it first is the physical end, the edges of the empire.

[00:14:17]>> So, you're talking about Marianas as being representative of the United States empire.

[00:14:22]>> Yes, I am.

[00:14:24]>> And you you believe that it is in a state of abject flux.

[00:14:30]>> Not abject flux, decay. So, that uh the decay has begun.

[00:14:35]I use the term uh rust, decay, you could use rot.

[00:14:42]Interestingly, I think we're in an election season where we're going to hear a lot of the word corrupt. But the word corrupt, the way we use it now is not the way that it was first used and was used for centuries and centuries.

[00:14:55]The meaning of corrupt, so it comes from a Latin root that means to break apart completely. And for centuries when it was used, the only way it was ever used was to describe uh things that were rotting, particularly human bodies. And so, I'm an Orthodox Christian, so in the Sorry, hit that. I'm an Orthodox Christian, so in the Orthodox faith, if you read the lives of the saints, but even if you read the ancient Catholic saints, which are the same for the first thousand years, you read the word corrupt over and over because they're talking about the bodies of the saints being uncorrupt when they dig them up after 100 years or 1,000 years. The way they know that it was a saint is because they haven't decayed at all. And so, they call those their bodies uncorrupt.

[00:15:34]And so, they say the uncorrupt bodies of the saints. And um so, it really is a story about corruption. And that what you see at the end of the empire is you see decay and you see rot that is not being fixed and that is steadily getting more and more in terms of rot. And just like uh you know, a organic thing, if you're looking at an apple that's sitting there, it will begin to rot on the outside first. The skin first and then the rot travels to the middle. If you're looking at something that's rusting, you're looking at a chair that you've left out in Saipan, that's a metal chair, it starts to rust at the edges first before it goes all the way in. And so, if you want to see whether or not an empire is is in a state of decay, you look at the edges.

[00:16:21]>> The Vineyard in the Vessel by Vin Armani can be purchased in paperback or ebook on Amazon.

[00:16:27]>> I write because I'm inspired to write.

[00:16:30]There's some concept that grabs me that I want to explore.

[00:16:33]>> We explore further with Vin in future KSPN 2 news broadcasts.

[00:16:40]>> Stay tuned. More news is after the break.

[00:16:46]>> When a crispier McCrispy [music] strip is created, only the best sauce will do.

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[00:17:07]>> [music] [music] >> Half a day, [music] Zantiro. I'm Leo Pangelinan with the Northern Mariana's Humanities Council.

[00:17:23]We'd like to take a moment [music] to thank our generous sponsors who have made possible the many programs in our community like this show. We couldn't have done it without them.

[00:17:33]And if you value the work we do and would like to make a [music] contribution to our efforts, we ask that you consider making an in-kind or cash contribution to the Northern Mariana's [music] Humanities Council.

[00:17:46]Any amount is appreciated and donations of up to $5,000 qualify for an educational [music] tax credit. We appreciate your partnership and support. Si Yu'us Ma'ase, Olomai, and thank you.

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[00:19:40]>> [music] >> Welcome back. You are watching the Wednesday night edition of the Channel 2 News.

[00:19:53]>> Representing the NMI can be done in many ways. You can be a proud member of the armed forces, you can delve into any type of studies and pursue higher education, you can be an athlete competing on home turf in the region or on international stages, and you can also be a line judge.

[00:20:11]>> The general secretary of the Northern Mariana's Badminton Association, Kristie Villaflor, is also Pacific accredited umpire and a Badminton World Federation international line judge. She's appointed as a line judge in an upcoming competition in Egypt.

[00:20:27]>> This is the World Junior competition. It will run from October 4 to the the 18th of October. So, it's exciting. It's going to be a long and tiring uh days for for me and a good experience also.

[00:20:44]>> Villaflor says she is honored to represent the NMI in this capacity and hopes that the youth can be inspired.

[00:20:50]>> It's It's nice to share it to the young and give them inspiration that there's always pathway for us.

[00:20:58]Um just not only as line judges because right now they think it's just It's just a line judging, but there is a pathway, professional pathway for that. Yeah, and they can be one of that.

[00:21:12]>> We often travel to return to see family, sometimes to gain a new experience, and sometimes we journey because well, because well, mom tells us to.

[00:21:22]Welcome to Saipan.

[00:21:25]At Saipan International, a young traveler arrives to attend a new high school, Saipan International. Her name is Andrea.

[00:21:34]>> Yeah, excited.

[00:21:36]>> And uh were you in Guam for vacation or just visiting or like that?

[00:21:39]>> Um I transferred to Saipan.

[00:21:42]>> Oh, okay, okay. So, you're from Guam but transferred to Saipan. And is this your first time here in Saipan?

[00:21:47]>> Uh no.

[00:21:48]>> No? You've been here before, all right?

[00:21:50]And uh you know, uh why did you want to come to school here in Saipan?

[00:21:55]>> My mom want want me to go here.

[00:21:57]>> Okay, all right.

[00:21:59]Charles Fam from Seattle is also here to see family, his brother.

[00:22:04]>> Uh my brother works here as a doctor at one of the hospitals here.

[00:22:08]So, I don't really remember the name, but he's been here for several years.

[00:22:11]So, I'm just trying to come visit him since uh since he's so far away from family.

[00:22:14]>> Oh, wow, okay. And is this your first time here in Saipan?

[00:22:17]>> Yeah, it's my first time in Saipan, but um I've heard great things about it.

[00:22:19]Looking forward to doing a lot of swimming, scuba diving uh while I'm out here.

[00:22:24]>> All right. And are you yourself in the medical profession, sir?

[00:22:26]>> No, I'm not. I work as an engineer for federal government.

[00:22:29]>> Federal government, all right. And uh you know, from what you're I guess your brother has told you, what have you heard about Saipan?

[00:22:35]>> Well, I mean, he's he said like great uh place for uh cliffs and tropical fruits, but uh apparently the the typhoons this year have taken a toll on that. So, um so, he's told me to temper my expectations a little bit, but I still think it's going to be a beautiful.

[00:22:49]>> Spencer Floyd arrives home from Japan.

[00:22:51]His wife, Raquel, is glad he's home in one piece.

[00:22:55]>> We had a karate tournament. Most of my team was there, so we're just coming back.

[00:23:01]>> And uh what I guess what gym or dojo do you represent?

[00:23:04]>> It's a Sensei of my uh martial arts academy. Martial arts Sensei uh Danny Boniaz.

[00:23:09]>> Okay, yes, yes. I think you guys are the guys who are the one in CK right or something?

[00:23:12]>> Yeah.

[00:23:12]>> Okay, all right. And uh you know, how was the tournament overall?

[00:23:15]>> Oh, it was good. It was tough.

[00:23:17]But more importantly, we gained experience and we had fun.

[00:23:21]So, that's about the main important thing.

[00:23:24]>> Sensei and his academy compete as a family, win or lose.

[00:23:30]>> This time, I can say we didn't the get the hardware that we supposed to bring it back, which is it's good in the last the last time tournaments last 2 years.

[00:23:44]And we're going to go come back there again.

[00:23:48]>> All right.

[00:23:48]>> And hopefully we're going to get this.

[00:23:51]>> All right.

[00:23:51]>> Cuz we actually we have been really affected with this disaster that we have.

[00:23:57]>> Yeah.

[00:23:58]>> A lot of stress.

[00:23:59]Until now, my my house doesn't have no uh the power.

[00:24:05]>> All right.

[00:24:05]>> So, it's a big thing with the uh uh happening over here.

[00:24:10]>> All right.

[00:24:11]>> That's why next time again.

[00:24:15]>> All right.

[00:24:15]>> Next 2 years, we going to come back there.

[00:24:18]>> And as some arrived at Saipan International, others depart to join a new family. Zachary DeFran is off to Army boot camp in South Carolina.

[00:24:29]>> I am a horizontal construction engineer.

[00:24:31]>> Nice, nice. So, you mostly like engineering for it?

[00:24:33]>> Yeah, yeah.

[00:24:34]>> And uh did you want to join the Army ever since you were young or >> Um it was honestly like it was a random day I was thinking to just join it. I had original plans to go to college first, but I heard that we can go college and the Army at the same time, so that's why I chose that path.

[00:24:51]>> All right. And are you planning to make a career out of it or is it mostly just for the experience of it?

[00:24:55]>> Um maybe just for the experience, but if it goes good, maybe I'll I'll join the active and stuff reserves.

[00:25:01]>> And what's one thing you're going to miss the most about Saipan?

[00:25:04]>> Uh, about Saipan, what I'm going to miss most is uh, maybe the community cuz I like to volunteer a lot, so maybe that's what I'll miss most.

[00:25:13]>> And finally, when you leave a big family, all of whom were loudly sending you on your way, you will need to find a way to get back home.

[00:25:23]Hayden Arriola has an idea.

[00:25:25]>> Seems like you have a big send-off. Who are all these people?

[00:25:28]>> [laughter] >> I do.

[00:25:35]>> [laughter] >> Well, so where you heading off to?

[00:25:38]>> I'm headed to Washington State for college.

[00:25:41]>> Nice, nice, nice. And uh, what are you going to study?

[00:25:43]>> Uh, I'm going to major in aviation to become a commercial pilot.

[00:25:47]>> She will need to study hard so she can fly back. Her friends told her so.

[00:25:52]>> And oh, what's one thing you're going to miss the most about Saipan while you're away?

[00:25:56]>> Oh, definitely the people. You're You're never find a connection of family like it is here. Everyone's so close and out there it's so far apart. Yeah.

[00:26:05]>> And do you have any like friends or siblings that are already in the states or are you >> I do. I do, but it's not as big as the entourage I have here.

[00:26:14]>> If you are flying off to build a new crew at school or to meet a new army family, adios. Or whether you are arriving to attend a new school or to see a long-lost brother or return with a team, welcome back.

[00:26:31]Welcome home.

[00:26:33]Welcome to Saipan.

[00:26:36]>> In this week's Your Humanities Half Hour, host Catherine Perry sits down with an educator who blends modern technology to help enhance humanities in the classroom.

[00:26:47]>> Riana Thraini is named the 2025 Governor's Humanities Awardee as outstanding humanities teacher in the classroom. She blends modern technology to help enhance the humanities. One of the ways technology is applied in the Chamorro Carolinian language heritage studies program includes her lessons on virtual field trips.

[00:27:05]>> So, with virtual field trips, teachers can take their students on these journeys anywhere in the world essentially, but really starting at home. So, even asking like a group of students, like has anyone of them been to Tinian and Rota? And you know, usually it's like one or two students.

[00:27:23]And in Rota and Tinian, you know, it's the same if we ask them if they've been to Saipan. So, even if we're in one sort of area, you know, one Marianas, we are not necessarily able to go to these different places even if we want to. So, what I did was I showed the Chamorro and Carolinian teachers virtual field trips that they could do from their devices and how to kind of send or share the links or the QR codes with their students so they can access them on their own devices as well. So, we took a virtual field trip to the House of Taga in Tinian, the Latte Stone Quarry in Rota, and even to Marpi and the Last Command Post in Saipan.

[00:28:09]>> It's surprising that a lot of students haven't even been to Marpi or up to or to Managaha let alone another island.

[00:28:18]So, that's really incredible.

[00:28:19]>> Natasha Ranie received the Generational AI Luminary Award at the International Standards for Technology Education Conference in 2025 and is also a former State Teacher of the Year. Tune in to hear more about her origin story, the importance of teaching humanities, digital wellness, the impacts of technology in the classroom, the educational technology program, and more. Your Humanities Half Hour show with host Katherine Perry airs on Thursday tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m. and airs on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. right here on channel 2.

[00:28:51]>> Here's the weather.

[00:28:53]The National Weather Service forecasts a 20% chance of isolated rainfall for this evening with mild breezes and low temperatures of around 77°.

[00:29:03]Tomorrow, Thursday, will be very much like today, pretty gorgeous, you know my, with a 30% chance of isolated rainfall and temperatures ranging from 87° in the day and dipping to 77° in the nighttime hours. The sun will set tonight at 6:50 p.m. and will rise again tomorrow morning at 5:57 a.m. just in time to see you in the water or on the land.

[00:29:31]>> Well, that was your Wednesday night newscast, you know my. Thank you for joining us.

[00:29:35]>> We'll see you again on Friday.

[00:29:50]>> [music] [music] [music] >> Ah.