MANILA, Philippines?It was a respite from the heat but not the silver lining everyone was hoping for.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said rain that came down in Metro Manila and Southern Luzon Friday morning did not mean an end to the El Niño phenomenon. And it certainly did not mean an end to the dry season and the accompanying hot weather.

Nathaniel Cruz, Pagasa deputy administrator for administration and operations, told the Inquirer that Friday?s rain showers, the first to occur in seven weeks, were ?transient.?

?The rains are due to a passing cold front. We expect a return of warm weather in a couple of days. While the rains were a welcome respite from the heat, we will again slowly feel the heat of the dry season,? Cruz said.

A cold front is an area where cold winds from the northern hemisphere meet the warm winds of the equator, bringing cloudy weather and passing showers.

Rainfall still below normal

Cruz said rainfall was still below normal.

?If we compute the amount of rain that fell today, it?s still below the normal amount that we should be getting at this time of the year. This is expected because we are still [experiencing] El Niño,? he said.

Cruz also said he would check with their personnel in northern and Central Luzon who reported that the skies in their areas were clear and temperatures were rising.

Drizzle

According to Rene Paciente, Pagasa weather forecaster, the rain gauges in their weather station at the Science Garden in Diliman, Quezon City, measured that 2 millimeters of rain had fallen between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday.

In Port Area in Metro Manila, reading for the same period was 4 mm. In Clark, the measurement was at 0.8 mm.

?This is strictly a drizzle,? Paciente said.

Pagasa also received the following readings: 8 mm in Baler, Aurora; 31 mm in Casiguran, Aurora; 9.8 mm in Tagaytay City; 3 mm in Tayabas, Quezon; 1 mm in Sangley Point in Cavite; 4 mm in Calapan, Mindoro; 6 mm in Ambulong, Batangas; 5 mm in Tanay; 23 mm in Infanta, Quezon; .8 mm in Daet, Camarines Sur; and 3 mm in Virac, Catanduanes.

Last time it rained

?The eastern parts of Luzon got a lot of rain,? Paciente observed.

He said the last time it rained in Metro Manila was on Jan. 23.

Paciente also said they expected clear skies in the western sections of the country in the coming days. ?It could be a little cloudy but with little chance of rain.?

The eastern sections could experience passing showers and light rain, he added.

Early dry season

The dry season came earlier than expected last month instead of March. Temperatures also reached the 34 and 35 degrees Celsius range, which usually occurs during the middle of the dry season in April and May when temperatures could soar to 36 and 37 degrees Celsius or more.

The early onset of the dry season had been blamed on the El Niño phenomenon, the unusual warming of the sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean which would cause abnormally hot weather and droughts.

Because of the heat, water levels in the country?s major dams had dropped, nearing critical levels.

Losses in the agricultural sector had been piling up with the most recent reports quoting losses at around P8 billion.