Friday hottest day in Metro this year

April is turning out to be, like the poet T.S. Eliot said, the cruelest month, as summer temperatures continue to sizzle and soar.

Friday’s temperature in Metro Manila sizzled at a high 36.4 degrees Celsius, the hottest day in Metro Manila so far this year. It surpassed the 36.2 degrees Celsius recorded in Quezon City last Tuesday and Wednesday.

But Friday’s reading taken at around 3 p.m. at the Science Garden in Quezon City, is still a far cry from the May 14, 1987, record of 38.5 degrees Celsius.

Residents of Novaliches, Quezon City, however found a brief respite from the heat when rains fell briefly in the area. The weather bureau also reported rainshowers and thunderstorms in Caloocan City, Fairview in Quezon City, Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija, Zambales, Mindoro and parts of Bicol from mid-afternoon to early evening.

Still, there’s no relief in sight as temperatures are expected to shoot up in the next few days as the dry season peaks toward early May.

“We’re still affected by the ridge of high pressure area. The clouds are thin and are unable to block the heat,” said weather observer Gener Quitlong of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

Temperature at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport read 35.1 degrees Celsius, and in Port Area, Manila, 34 degrees Celsius.  Just outside the capital, Sangley in Cavite recorded a temperature of 35.3 degrees Celsius.

Farther north, Cabanatuan in Nueva Ecija recorded a high 37.2 degrees Celsius, while Tuguegarao in Cagayan registered 36.5 degrees Celsius.

Today, the archipelago will be partly cloudy, with cloudy skies and isolated rain showers or thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening. The public is advised to stay indoors between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. when the temperature is at its hottest.

Meanwhile, a low pressure area earlier forecast to enter eastern Mindanao this week had weakened into a band of clouds, observers said.