Pagasa sees bad weather on day of Pacquiao-Broner bout

MANILA, Philippines — Don’t neglect your safety on Sunday, the day of the bout between WBA welterweight champ Manny Pacquiao and challenger Adrien Boner, Undersecretary Renato Solidum Jr. of the Department of Science and Technology warned on Saturday.

“Bukas bilang Pilipino ay excited tayo makapanood ng isang mahalagang laban, pero isipin po natin, may laban din po tayo sa kalikasan,” Solidum said in a press conference.

[Tomorrow we as Filipinos are excited to watch this important fight, but let’s be aware that we also have a fight with nature.]

He was referring to the effects of a low pressure area (LPA) that had entered the Philippine area of responsibility.

As of 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, the LPA was spotted at 585 east-southeast of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur, and is predicted to intensify into a tropical depression by Sunday, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

“Kung manonood tayo ng boxing ay siguraduhin natin na handang-handa na tayo at ligtas po ang ating kinatatayuan o kinapapanooran,” Solidum said.

[If we’re watching the boxing match, let’s make sure that we’re ready and safe wherever we may be.]

As early as Saturday evening, Pagasa predicted cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorm over the Visayas and Mindanao.

Residents in those regions are advised to prepare for possible flash flooding or landslides due to scattered moderate to at times heavy rainfall.

The northeast monsoon, meanwhile, will affect the Cagayan Valley Region, Ilocos Region, Cordillera Administrative Region, Bicol Region and Aurora province, bringing cloudy skies with light rainfall.

Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated light rains also caused by the northeast monsoon. /atm