PAGASA forecasts rainy Christmas Eve

Although no tropical cyclone has been spotted so far in the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration or PAGASA warned on Friday that rains brought about by a wind convergence might still affect the Visayas and Mindanao, including provinces severely hit by tropical storm “Sendong” last week.

Aldzar Aurelio, PAGASA weather forecaster, warned residents, particularly those living in the eastern side of the Visayas and northern and eastern section of Mindanao to be on alert as heavy rains may trigger flooding and landslides anew. The same areas were hit by heavy flooding due to heavy rains from “Sendong” last week.

“Kahit mahina ang ulan baka magkaroon pa rin ng landslides dahil saturated na ang lupa (Even if the rains are weak, landslides might still occur as the soil is already saturated),” Aurelio said.

Among the provinces in the eastern side of Visayas that are expected to experience rains are Samar and the Leyte provinces.

Meanwhile areas in the northern Afside

of Mindanao that are expected to experience rains include Cagayan, Iligan, Misamis Oriental, Lanao Del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Surigao del Norte, Camiguin, Dinagat Island, and Bukidnon.

The eastern side of Mindanao that will be affected by rains include the Agusan provinces, Surigao, and Davao provinces.

Aurelio said the weather bureau is not expecting the entry of any cyclone in the country for the next three days. He added that if history will serve as basis, tropical storm “Sendong” will be the last weather disturbance to affect the country for the rest of December.

“If we will base it on history, only one tropical storm usually affects the country for the month of December. But we will still continue to monitor the situation,” he said.

According to PAGASA’s weather update for the rest of the weekend, Northern Luzon and the eastern section of Central and Southern Luzon will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers becoming cloudy with widespread rains over the eastern section which may trigger flashfloods and landslides.

The Eastern Visayas and Mindanao, meanwhile, will have mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms while the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong winds blowing from the northeast will prevail over Luzon and Eastern Visayas and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate, coming from the East and northeast with slight to moderate seas.

More than 1,000 people were killed, while more than 1,000 remained missing after heavy flooding hit the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan last week.

Also affected by the floods were rural, urban, and coastal communities in the northern provinces of Mindanao, including Surigao and Agusan provinces, Siargao Island, Dinagat, Bukidnon, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, Compostela Valley, Camiguin island, Lanao, and Zamboanga provinces. Flooding also occurred in the Visayas, especially in Negros Oriental.

By FRANCIS T. WAKEFIELD
mb.com.ph

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