Tropical storm Gaemi may enter PH Tuesday

MANILA, Philippines – Tropical storm Gaemi inched closer to the Philippine territory Tuesday afternoon and has started to bring rains as it enhanced the southwest monsoon, the state weather bureau said.

Weather forecaster Samuel Duran told INQUIRER.net that Gaemi was likely to enter the country Tuesday night or early Wednesday, but will not make landfall.

“It will stay in the country for three to four days and will affect Central and Southern Luzon, and maybe even Metro Manila,” he added.

Gaemi, which was last spotted 440 kilometers west of northern Luzon,  packed maximum winds of 65kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph. It was forecast to move east southeast at 10kph.

It will be called Marce once it enters the Philippine area of responsibility.

Duran said the storm is enhancing the southwest monsoon, which had been indirectly causing rains in Metro Manila and parts of Luzon.

Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon and the provinces of Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, Mt Province, Isabela, Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya and Mindoro will be cloudy with occasional moderate to heavy rains or thunderstorms, Pagasa said.

The rest of the country will be partly cloudy with brief rainshowers or thunderstorms.