Heavy rains flood parts of Metro Manila

Local weather forecast from PAGASA’s Project NOAH as of June 13, 2013 6pm

MANILA, Philippines – Heavy rain submerged parts of Metro Manila Thursday, forcing most schools in affected areas to suspend classes and the Philippine National Railways to stop its operations.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), in its 5 p.m. forecast, said that rainshowers and thunderstorms were also expected in Calabarzon (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon), Mimaropa (Mindoro-Marinduque-Romblon-Palawan), Western Visayas and in Zambales and Bataan due to a southwest monsoon.

It cautioned residents in these areas against possible flashfloods and landslides.

Moderate to strong winds from the southwest to south will prevail over the western sections of Luzon and Visayas.

On a regular day, heavy traffic is a usual sight on Quirino Avenue in Manila during rush hours but on Thursday afternoon, vehicles got stuck for almost two hours as floodwaters paralyzed Metro Manila’s major thoroughfares. Totel V. de Jesus/INQUIRER.net

Pagasa warned that coastal waters along these areas would be moderate to rough.

Meanwhile, Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao and the rest of Luzon and Visayas will have cloudy skies and could experience light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorms.

Partly cloudy skies with isolates rainshowers or thunderstorms are expected in the rest of Mindanao, Pagasa said.

The weather bureau said that light to moderate winds from southeast to south will prevail over the rest of Luzon and Visayas and from the northeast to north over Mindanao with slight to moderate seas.

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