HAGATNA, Guam – A 44-year-old woman on Saipan was killed after she sought shelter in an abandoned building that collapsed at the height of Super Typhoon Yutu, which has brought about a humanitarian crisis in the Northern Mariana Islands.

Yutu, whose 178 mph winds made it the strongest storm on record to ever hit a U.S. territory, flattened neighborhoods on the islands of Tinian and Saipan, displaced hundreds of residents, damaged buildings, businesses and other infrastructure, and caused massive power and water outages.

The Northern Marinas Islands is a U.S. commonwealth in the South Pacific Ocean with a population of 52,000 people.

The Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands governor's office, in a Thursday statement , confirmed the death of a woman in the Saipan village of Chalan Kanoa and warned of the "long recovery period" ahead.

"This is an unfortunate incident, but CNMI and federal partners continue to focus on life-saving and life-sustaining operations," the statement said.

The territory’s only hospital in Saipan, the most populated island, said it received 133 people in the emergency room on Thursday, and three patients had severe injuries that required surgery.

On the smaller island of Tinian, which took a direct hit, most of the houses were destroyed, even some concrete ones reduced to rubble, resident Juanita Mendiola said.

“We had to hide inside the bathroom because the house felt like it was going to blow apart,” she said. “It was literally shaking – a concrete house shaking.”

Gov. Ralph Torres submitted an expedited request to FEMA for immediate humanitarian relief for displaced residents, even as he announced that relief and recovery efforts are now well underway.

"Food, water, cots, toilet kits, tarps and temporary shelter resources are a part of that request," Torres said.

More:Deadly Super Typhoon Yutu strongest storm to ever hit US territory, second strongest to hit US overall

There were 200 to 300 downed power poles, 400 to 500 leaning power poles and a large number of downed transformers and conductors on Saipan and Tinian, according to preliminary assessments.

Joint damage assessments are being coordinated between the Office of the Governor, FEMA, and the American Red Cross.

Officials toured villages in Saipan and saw cars crushed under a collapsed garage, the ground ripped clean of vegetation and some people injured by spraying glass and other debris.

But residents “were stoic and still smiling and they were just thankful to be alive,” said Edwin Propst, a member of the territory’s House of Representatives.

Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, the islands’ delegate to Congress, said most of the structures in the southern part of Saipan lost their roofs and many, including a high school, were “completely destroyed.”

“This damage is just horrendous, it’s going to take months and months for us to recover,” he said by phone.

Commonwealth residents were urged to remain indoors to allow first responders to clear roadways of debris,authorities said.

Lanes have been cleared for first responder transport and commuter traffic, but an advisory remains in effect as downed power poles and lines obstruct normal traffic flow on the main highways and access points.

Torres said Yutu is the worst storm to hit the Marianas since Typhoon Jean in 1968.

Contributing: The Associated Press