Weather satellite image from Pagasa
MANILA, Philippines — The low-pressure area (LPA) spotted near Eastern Samar may intensify into a tropical depression within 24 to 48 hours, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Thursday afternoon.
The tropical cyclone will be named Egay and might be the fifth typhoon to hit the country this year and the second in July.
In a phone interview, Pagasa weather specialist Rhea Torres told INQUIRER.net that the LPA was last located 705 kilometers east of Borongan, Eastern Samar.
She also confirmed that the LPA may develop into a typhoon “within 24 to 48 hours.”
It is the same LPA that was 715 kilometers east of Surigao City, Surigao del Norte, in the early morning of Thursday, according to Torres.
READ: Potential cyclone off Mindanao may traverse, make landfall in Luzon – Pagasa
Based on Pagasa’s 4 a.m., July 20 weather bulletin, if the LPA develops into a tropical cyclone, it may pass through or hit Luzon or change direction toward Japan – although “there is still high uncertainty” regarding its exact route.
However, Torres noted the LPA had “moved up” by Thursday afternoon over the Philippine Sea off the Visayas region.
READ: Pagasa: Flood advisories up in parts of Bicol, VisMin due to LPA
In Pagasa’s 11 a.m. weather bulletin, the LPA is expected to affect the following areas:
- Eastern Visayas
- Camarines Sur
- Albay
- Catanduanes
- Sorsogon
- Masbate
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