Rains seen in Luzon, Visayas due to ‘Opong,’ ‘habagat’
Severe Tropical Storm “Opong” (international name: Bualoi) and the southwest monsoon or “habagat” is expected to bring rains to many areas, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Wednesday.
As of 3 p.m., Opong was located around 680 kilometers east of Surigao City, Surigao del Norte, moving west-northwestward at 20 kilometers per hour (kph) with maximum sustained winds of 95 kph and gusts of up to 115 kph.
Pagasa said that Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) no. 2 was in effect in the northern portion of Eastern Samar (San Policarpo, Oras, Jupadpad, Arteche) and Northern Samar.
On the other hand, the following areas in Luzon and the Visayas are under TCWS no. 1: Catanduanes, Camarines Sur, Albay, Sorsogon, Masbate, Samar, the rest of Eastern Samar, Biliran and the northern portion of Leyte (Barugo, San Miguel, Babatngon, Tacloban, Cakubian, Leyte, Capoocan, Carigara, Palo).
Pagasa said that Opong would also bring “scattered rains and thunderstorms” to the following areas: Bicol Region, Central Visayas, Quezon, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Isabela, Aurora and the rest of Eastern Visayas.
The same weather conditions will likewise prevail in the following areas due to the southwest monsoon: Metro Manila, Ilocos Region, Cordillera Administrative Region, Western Visayas, Negros Island Region, Zamboanga Peninsula, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Lanao del Norte, Camiguin, and the rest of Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon.
Opong may exit the Philippine area of responsibility by Saturday afternoon, Pagasa said.
The Land Transportation Office, meanwhile, asked motorists on Wednesday to suspend nonessential land travel to the Bicol region, Visayas and Mindanao.
It issued the travel advisory upon the request of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, which had recommended the postponement of trips to the provinces of Masbate and Catanduanes, as well as to the Visayas and Mindanao. —WITH A REPORT FROM GILLIAN VILLANUEVA
