Pagasa: Easterlies to warm up PH on Saturday

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration says that easterlies, or warm winds blowing from the Pacific Ocean, will prevail over the country on Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Pagasa)

MANILA, Philippines — The state weather bureau said on Saturday that easterlies, or warm winds blowing from the Pacific Ocean, will prevail over the country throughout the day.

“Kahapon ay opisyal na ngang idineklara ng Pagasa [Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration] ang pagtatapos ng northeast monsoon season. Kaakibat nito ‘yung patuloy na epekto naman ng easterlies,” Pagasa weather specialist Daniel James Villamil said in an early morning forecast.

(Yesterday, Pagasa officially declared the end of the northeast monsoon season. Along with this, the continuous effect of the easterlies persists.)

READ: Pagasa: Summer is officially here

The said weather system will bring cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms over Aurora, Quezon, and Camarines Norte, Pagasa said.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country, on the other hand, may expect generally fair weather conditions with chances of partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms due to easterlies and localized thunderstorms.

Pagasa warned those residing in low-lying areas against possible flash floods or landslides due to moderate to heavy rains.

READ: Pagasa forecasts two days of 46°C heat index in La Union

In a press conference last Friday, Pagasa chief Dr. Nathaniel Servando formally announced the termination of the northeast monsoon season and the start of the dry season, or “summer,” as commonly referred to by Filipinos.

Ana Liza Solis, officer-in-charge of the climatology and agrometeorology division of Pagasa, also said that this summer “could be one of the warmest” dry seasons ever recorded in the Philippines due to the ongoing effects of El Niño.

Solis said that temperatures in the Cagayan Valley Region could reach 40ºC from March to May.

Additionally, the heat index, or the temperature that the human body feels, may reach the “danger” and “extreme danger” categories from April to May.