MANILA, Philippines -- The lingering southwest monsoon, or “ habagat ,” will continue to drench Luzon’s western seaboard over the weekend as typhoon “Halong” continued to approach the Philippine area of responsibility, which it is forecast to enter Monday. Once the storm enters the PAR, it will be locally known as “Jose.” However, weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, said the storm, which would be the tenth to visit the country, is not expected to make landfall but will skim past Northern Luzon, although it will enhance the southwest monsoon and induce more rains. Early Saturday, PAGASA said Halong was tracked 1,440 kilometers east of Central Luzon with maximum sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour, gusting up to 150 kph, and moving slowly west-northwest. Metro Manila, the CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, Ilocos and Cordillera regions, and the provinces of Pampanga, Bulacan, Tarlac, Zambales and Bataan will experience occasional rains. The rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers and thunderstorms. Moderate to strong winds blowing from the southwest will prevail throughout the entire archipelago and the coastal waters will be moderate to rough.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 01:21:15 +0000