Sea travel curbed amid storm ‘Helen’s’ wake

Fastcraft trips to Bohol and Leyte provinces  were suspended yesterday due to rough waves, as coastal residents in Cebu were warned about the entry of Tropical Storm “Helen”.

Households in vulnerable areas by the sea like part of Talisay City were advised to seek higher ground due to the risk  of a storm surge,  said weather analyst Al Quiblat of the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pagasa.

Cebu Coast Guard Commander Rolando Punzalan said the travel ban  for fastcrafts took effect at 3:45 p.m.

The order also affects passengers for Dumaguete City, a destination of fastcrafts that stop over in Tagbilaran City in Bohol.

Punzalan said rough seas forced two vessels to suspend trips on Tuesday.

FastCraft 2 of the Aznar Shipping Co. voluntarily  suspended its trip at 11:30 am. from Toledo City to San Carlos City.

St. Jhudiel fastcraft (formerly Supercat) also suspended its trip from Cebu City to Tagbilaran City at 12:30 noon  because of rough seas.

At 2 p.m. yesterday, OceanJet 8 left for Tagbilaran City but had to turn back when it reached Lawis Ledge because of rough seas.

Punzalan said trips for conventional vessels are unaffected.

Waves reached 3.4 meters to 4.5 meters high as a result of the  southwest monsoon or habagat,  enhanced by tropical storm Helen.

Quiblat said a storm surge or monsoon surge similar to what happened during the onset of Typhoon Gener may hit Cebu’s coastal areas.

He said residents along the seashore need not wait for strong waves to wash out their houses.

Quiblat said while “Helen” may have lower rain volume than  Gener, it still increased the height of the waves.

The weather analyst also said residents of landslide prone areas should be  vigilant and move out when a downpour occurs.

Based on satellite and surface data, “Helen” was observed at 230 kilometers east northeast of Casiguran, Aurora, moving in a west-northwest direction at a relatively slow pace of 13 kilometers per hour, Pagasa said.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 75 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 90 kph, Helen is not seen to intensify into a typhoon, Pagasa said.

Pagasa hoisted Public Storm Signal No. 2, with winds of 61-100 kph, over the provinces of Cagayan, including the Babuyan Group of Islands, Isabela, Apayao, Kalinga and Batanes.

On the other hand, Public Storm Signal No. 1, with winds of 45-60 kph, was raised over Quirino, Aurora, Nueva Vizcaya, Ifugao, Benguet, Mountain Province, Ilocos Sur, Abra, and Ilocos Norte provinces.

Strong to gale-force winds will affect the seaboards of Central and Southern Luzon and Visayas, causing conditions at sea to be rough to very rough and spurring 3.4 to 4.5 meter waves, it added.

In a briefing, Pagasa weather division chief Robert Sawi said Helen is expected to be at 50 km north northeast of Tuguegarao City by Wednesday morning and at 270 km west southwest of Basco, Batanes by Thursday morning.

By Friday morning, it is seen to be at 550 km northwest of Basco, Batanes.

“Helen should be out of the country by Thursday evening,” he said.

As in past weeks, the new weather disturbance is seen to enhance the southwest monsoon, which has dumped torrential rains over large parts of Luzon, especially the western section.

Rainfall amount will pour at a heavy rate, from 15 to 25 mm per hour, within a 500-km diameter of the tropical storm. With an Inquirer report