MANILA, Philippines — It’s going to be a cloudy and wet Friday for most parts of the country because of Severe Tropical Storm Siony and the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
The state weather bureau’s Thursday afternoon bulletin noted cloud bands affecting the middle section of the country, from Central Luzon to Southern Luzon, including Metro Manila, as well Siony’s trough or extension that causes overcast skies and precipitation on Thursday night. It also noted the ITCZ affecting Visayas and Mindanao.
“Nakikita rin natin sa ating satellite animation itong mga kaulapan dito sa may gitnang bahagi ng ating bansa, dito po sa may Southern Luzon ‘yong trough or extension ni Siony ang nagdudulot ng kaulapan ngayong gabi at mga pag-ulan,” weather specialist Ariel Rojas said.
“And dito naman po sa may Visayas at Mindanao, intertropical convergence zone or ITCZ ang nagdudulot ng kaulapan at mga pag-ulan dyan,” he added.
And even if Tropical Storm Goni (locally named Rolly) has ceased to have an effect on the country’s weather situation, Pagasa said it is still monitoring a new low-pressure area (LPA) east of Mindanao that is seen to enter the Philippine area of responsibility this Friday.
Pagasa said the new LPA is likely to develop into a tropical depression in the next 48 hours as it lingers longer over waters east of Visayas.
Once it becomes a tropical depression within PAR, it will be named “Tonyo,” according to the weather agency.
Meantime, despite the rain on Friday, Pagasa’s forecast indicated generally warm weather in Luzon with temperatures ranging from 24°C to 32°C in Metro Manila and 25°C to 31°C in Legazpi and Puerto Princesa although it will be around 24°C to 30°C in Laoag and 22°C to 29°C in Tuguegarao because of Siony.
Colder weather due to ITCZ will be felt in Visayas and Mindanao, as Tacloban, Cebu, Iloilo, and Davao will possibly have temperatures between 25°C and 31°C.
A gale warning remains over the entire eastern seaboard of Luzon, from Cagayan Valley to Southern Luzon and Bicol Region, plus the northern seaboards including Batanes Group of Islands because of Siony. The same warning was also in effect over the western seaboards of the Ilocos Region and Central Luzon.
Due to the inclement weather, all boats are advised against sailing as there may be rough to very rough sea conditions.
Earlier, Pagasa saidSiony may either make landfall or make a close approach over islands in extreme Northern Luzon. It likewise raised the possibility of Siony nearing Batanes as a typhoon as it continues to intensify.
Siony was last seen 340 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes, moving west at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour (kph). Based on Pagasa’s latest monitoring, Siony packs maximum sustained winds of 100 kph with gustiness of up to 125 kph.