THE Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) anticipates the southwest monsoon (Habagat) to continue bringing scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms as well as gusty winds to Luzon, including Metro Manila, and the Visayas until Thursday.
Weather forecaster Adzar Aurelio said that while the sighted low pressure area (LPA) east of Northern Luzon was too far from the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), as of Sunday, western Luzon should expect more rains as an effect of the monsoon.
Aurelio said that the southwest monsoon would affect the country until next week because of the pull of tropical storm Haikui, which was headed for southern Japan, as of Sunday. “So these weather conditions (rains and gusty winds) will prevail maybe until Thursday,” he pointed out.
He stressed that while Pagasa has not detected any weather disturbance, the LPA might move within the PAR by Tuesday.
Pagasa in its weather bulletin issued on Sunday, forecast cloudy skies in Luzon and Visayas with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms while the rest of the country has been expected to be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms.
Moderate to strong winds from the southwest will prevail throughout the country and the coastal waters will be moderate to rough.
Gale force winds caused by the monsoon surge is expected to make seas on the seaboards of Luzon and the Visayas to be rough to very rough. Fishing boats and other small crafts were advised not to venture out into sea while larger sea vessels were alerted against big waves./INQUIRER