Storm ‘Lawin’ gains strength

MANILA, Philippines—Signal number one was hoisted over Eastern Samar as tropical storm ‘Lawin’ (international codename: Jelawat) gained strength and moved slowly to west southwest direction, the state weather bureau said Friday.

Lawin was seen 560 kilometers west of Catarman, Northern Samar, packing maximum sustained winds of  85 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up 100 kph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said.

It was moving west southwest at 9 kph.

Moderate to heavy rains were seen within 600 kilometers of Lawin.

The storm was forecast 370 km east of Catarman, Northern Samar by Saturday afternoon; 270 km East of Virac, Catanduanes by Sunday afternoon;  and 240 km Northeast of Virac, Cataduanes by Monday afternoon.

Samar provinces will have rains with gusty winds. The regions of Cordillera, Ilocos, Cagayan valley and Central Luzon will experience cloudy skies with occasional moderate to heavy rains. Occasional light to moderate rains and thunderstorms will be experienced in Metro Manila, Mimaropa, Calabarzon, Bicol region, the rest of Visayas and Mindanao.

Moderate to strong winds blowing from the southwest to west will prevail over Palawan, Visayas and Mindanao and the coastal waters in these areas will be moderate to rough. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the northeast to northwest with slight to moderate seas, Pagasa said.