Rains are possible in parts of the country due to five weather systems on All Saints’ Day or November 1, Saturday, according to the latest update from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
The northeast monsoon (amihan) is expected to bring light rains over the Batanes area, Pagasa specialist Grace Castañeda said in the agency’s morning weather forecast.
Meanwhile, scattered rain showers were expected over the Cagayan area due to the shear line.
‘It is possible we may experience strong rains,’ Castañeda added.
On another hand, the areas of Mimaropa and Bicol Region may experience isolated rain showers due to the easterlies or warm winds from the Pacific Ocean.
Then, Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao may also experience rain due to the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) or where trade winds from the northern and southern hemispheres meet.
Lastly, a low-pressure area (LPA) west of the country is expected to bring rains over Palawan, particularly the Kalayaan Islands.
‘The rest of Luzon will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies. It is still possible that there will be sudden and brief rain showers due to localized thunderstorms,’ Castañeda explained.
Despite the developments, Pagasa did not raise a gale warning over the country’s seaboards.
However, it did warn of moderate to strong sea conditions in the waters off northern and central Luzon with waves reaching between 1.5 to 2.8 meters; while the rest of the country can expect slight to moderate sea conditions with waves between 0.6 and 1.8 meters.
Cyclones
The LPA west of the country was last spotted 275 kilometers from Coron, Palawan.
‘It still has a low chance of becoming a tropical cyclone and we see its movement is westward or away from our landmass,’ Castañeda noted.
Meanwhile, another LPA east of the country became a tropical depression early Saturday morning.
The tropical depression was last spotted 1,430 kilometers (km) east of northeastern Mindanao, Castañeda said.
The cyclone is packing maximum wind speeds of up to 45 km per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 55 kph while moving westward at 15 kph.
Castañeda said the tropical depression does not have an effect yet on the country.
Once the cyclone enters the PAR, it will be given the local name Tino.
‘The possible landfall is over eastern Visayas or Caraga area by Tuesday morning. But, if the tropical cyclone moves faster, it may make landfall over these areas by Monday evening,’ Castañeda explained.
‘In terms of intensity, this tropical cyclone will intensify while it is moving over the Philippine Sea and it is possible it will intensify into the typhoon category before it makes landfall,’ she added.