The northern portions of Luzon will experience rainshowers starting on Friday due to the effects of the southwest monsoon enhanced by Tropical Storm “Karding” (international name: “Yagi”) and a developing low pressure area in the West Philippine Sea, the weather bureau said on Thursday.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said scattered to widespread, moderate to heavy rains would prevail over western sections of northern and Central Luzon on Friday, even as Karding continued to move away from the country.
Weather specialist Ariel Rojas said that as of 3 p.m. on Thursday, Karding was estimated at 1,160 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes.
The storm had maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 80 kph.
No landfall
It is on its way out of the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR), traveling northwestward and not likely to make landfall on any part of the country, Rojas said.
It is expected to leave PAR between Friday night and Saturday morning, he added.
A low pressure area spotted outside of the PAR in the West Philippine Sea will possibly form into a cyclone on Friday or Saturday, according to Rojas.
According to Pagasa, Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon and Western Visayas will experience cloudy skies with scattered rains and thunderstorms, while the rest of the Visayas and the whole of Mindanao will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rains due to the southwest monsoon or “habagat.” —MELVIN GASCON