LPA off Batanes may intensify into a tropical cyclone—Pagasa

www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph

MANILA, Philippines—State weather forecasters on Friday said that a low-pressure area spotted north of the country has a 50-percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone.

The LPA, as of mid-Friday, was observed 285 kilometers northeast of Basco, Batanes, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said.

Along with the southwest monsoon affecting Northern Luzon, the LPA is expected to bring moderate to occasionally heavy rains and thunderstorms especially over Ilocos Norte , La Union and Batanes, Babuyan and Calayan group of islands, the bureau said.

Pagasa warned residents in those areas of possible flash floods and landslides and advised them to take precautionary measures.

Meanwhile, another LPA was observed farther away, some 1,220 kilometers east of extreme northern Luzon, but it was not expected to approach the country. “It appears to be moving eastward,” said Pagasa forecaster Connie Dadivas.

She said the LPA near Batanes had a 50-percent chance of intensifying into a tropical depression.

Based on Pagasa’s 24-hour weather outlook, the regions of Ilocos, Cordillera, Cagayan Valley and Zamboanga Peninsula will experience cloudy skies with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms, it added. Moderate to strong winds blowing from the southwest will prevail over Luzon and its coastal waters will be moderate to rough, Pagasa said.

Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the south to southwest with slight to moderate seas, the agency said.