Slight rains, no typhoon seen this Christmas

SLIGHT rains will be experienced but it would otherwise be a typhoon-free Christmas, the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday.

Pagasa Mactan analyst Boy Artiaga said the country is experiencing wind convergence due to the presence of the northeast monsoon, which remains until February.

Artiaga said rainy days in December is normal and expected to be heavier by January.

He said they spotted a low-pressure area outside the Philippine area of responsibility.

He said they could not predict if the LPA will develop into a tropical depression when it hits the country.

Artiaga said the current wind convergence is unlikely to develop into an Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) since the clouds aren’t thick enough.

At best, Artiaga said rains will be slight to moderate at five to 10 mm.

Artiaga said residents living in landslide-prone and flood-prone areas should evacuate on the initial signs of hazard.

The northeast monsoon is affecting Luzon while the wind convergence is affecting Mindanao.

Luzon will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rain showers, which may trigger flash floods and landslides.

Eastern Visayas and Mindanao will have mostly cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms.

The rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong winds will prevail over Luzon and Eastern Visayas and coastal waters will be moderate to rough. Reporter Candeze R. Mongaya