New weather disturbance to bring rain to Visayas, Mindanao

Screengrab from www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph

MANILA, Philippines—Although a low pressure area east of Davao City is not expected to develop into a tropical cyclone, the weather bureau on Saturday warned of rains that might trigger flashfloods and landslides in some parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said it was also monitoring the formation of another low pressure system over the Pacific Ocean east of Mindanao, still far from the Philippine area of responsibility.

Weather forecaster Benison Estareja alerted residents in the Davao, Caraga and the Eastern Visayas regions to the likelihood of moderate to occasionally heavy rains and thunderstorms caused by the low pressure area that could trigger floods and landslides.

The rest of the Visayas and Mindanao will have light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorms.

“There is a very small chance of the LPA to develop into a tropical cyclone because it is already near the country’s landmass,” Estareja said, adding that a a low pressure area requires circulation over a body of water to become a cyclone.

Even then, he said, residents in the areas where the low pressure area is expected to pass should brace themselves for moderate to heavy rains.

“The LPA is expected to cross the Visayas, following tropical depression Queenie’s track,” the forecaster said.

As of 10 a.m. Saturday, the low pressure area was located 150 kilometers east of Davao City.

Meanwhile, Estareja said that the other low pressure area being monitored by Pagasa was still too far from the PAR.

“It is too soon to tell whether the LPA will form a cyclone or dissipate because of its distance from the PAR,” he said.

Pagasa’s forecast for Sunday said that while the Caraga and Eastern Visayas regions were expected to have cloudy skies with moderate to occasionally heavy rains and thunderstorms, the rest of the Visayas and Mindanao and the Bicol and Mimaropa regions would have cloudy skies with light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorms.

Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong winds will prevail over the entire archipelago with moderate to rough seas.