Rains over western Luzon to prevail even as TS Dante moves away
MANILA, Philippines — Residents over the western part of Luzon can expect rains even as Tropical Storm Dante continues to move away from the country’s landmass, the state weather bureau said on Thursday afternoon.
The latest bulletin from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) showed that Dante was able to maintain its strength packing maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 90 kph.
It was last seen 255 kilometers west of Sinait, Ilocos Sur, and is moving northwest at a speed of 25 kph.
Due to its movement, Dante would temporarily leave the northwestern border of the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) by Thursday night, and then re-enter by Friday evening.
By this time, Dante would have weakened to a tropical depression as waters in the northern portion of the West Philippine Sea have colder temperatures, which are not suitable for cyclones.
Dante still brings cloud clusters along with it, although most of the clouds are over the West Philippine Sea. Still, the western portions of Luzon like Ilocos Region and the Zambales and Bataan provinces would see rains.
Due to the cloudy skies, temperatures in these areas for Friday would be lower compared to the rest of Luzon. Baguio City would have something around 17 to 25 degrees Celsius, Laoag with 25 to 34 degrees, and Tagaytay with 21 to 30 degrees.
In comparison, Tuguegarao which sits on the eastern part of Luzon would have temperatures of 26 to 38 degrees Celsius, Metro Manila with 25 to 32 degrees, and Puerto Princesa and Legazpi with 26 to 33 degrees.
Hot and humid weather can be expected over Mindanao for Friday: Tacloban with 25 to 32 degrees Celsius, Cebu with 26 to 32 degrees, Davao and Iloilo with 25 to 33 degrees, Cagayan de Oro with 24 to 32 degrees, and Zamboanga with 24 to 34 degrees.
Despite tropical cyclone wind signals already lifted, a gale warning remains in place over the waters of Ilocos Region, including Batanes and Babuyan Islands, due to Dante. Fisherfolk and small boat operators are not allowed to set sail as sea conditions would range from rough to very rough.
For the rest of Luzon’s western seaboards, sea condition would be moderate to rough, while the eastern seaboard would be moderate.
Pagasa also said that the low pressure area east of the country, last spotted 820 kilometers east of Virac, Catanduanes, is expected to dissipate as it nears the country’s landmass.
