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Kabayan has intensified into tropical storm while traversing Central Luzon. The first landfall was made at 12:20 AM over Baler- San Luis Aurora.
Tropical storm (TS) Kabayan will bring moderate to occasionally heavy rains over the provinces of Cavite, Laguna and Batangas.
At 8:00 AM, TS Kabayan was located in the vicinity of Lingayen Gulf, Pangasinan with maximum sustained winds of 65 kph and gustiness of 80 kph. If TS Kabayan maintains its speed and direction west-northwest at 20 kph, it is expected to exit Philippine landmass through La Union or Pangansinan at noontime or this afternoon, and will exit Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on Saturday morning.
Sea travel is risky in the seaboards of Northern Luzon and Central Luzon, and the eastern seaboard of Quezon, including Polillo Island.
Today, stormy weather is expected in the provinces of Aurora, Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Benguet, La Union and Pangasinan.
Meanwhile, rains with gusty winds will prevail in Metro Manila, the rest of Central Luzon, Ilocos Sur, Ifugao, Mt. Province, Isabela, Rizal and Quezon.
Light to moderate rain showers will be experienced in Western Visayas and the rest of Luzon.
The rest of the country will have partly cloudy skies with isolated rains or thunderstorms.

Public Storm Warning Signals
signal

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Rainy weather due to thunderstorms became prevalent these past few days. PAGASA Weather Forecaster Meno Mendoza said that thunderstorms are more likely to continue for the rest of September. This weather activity is linked to the southwest monsoon, currently affecting Southern Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. This will dump rain showers mostly in parts of MIMAROPA, Eastern and Central Luzon, Northern Mindanao, CARAGA, and the provinces of Aurora and Quezon.
The rest of the country, including Metro Manila, will have sunny weather during morning until noon, and thunderstorms in the afternoon or evening.

Meanwhile, another Low Pressure Area (LPA) is being monitored by the weather bureau. Located at 560 kms. west of Dagupan, the LPA remains to be outside Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR).

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<brToday the southwest monsoon is affecting Palawan and the western section of Visayas and Mindanao. Cloudy skies with light to moderate rains and isolated thunderstorms will be experienced over Western Visayas, Caraga northern Mindanao and the province of Palawan.
Meanwhile, partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated thunderstorms will prevail over Metro Manila and the rest of the country.
Last night, most parts of Metro Manila were soaked in heavy rain showers. PAGASA Weather Forecaster Meno Mendoza said that the rain showers were cauesd mainly by thunderstorm activities. The accumulated heat from noon until early afternoon resulted to the formation of thunderstorm clouds. These give rise to rain that usually pours between 5 PM – 11 PM. To understand more about thunderstorms, watch this video:Panahon TV interview with PAGASA.

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The southwest monsoon, locally knows as “habagat,” is now affecting Palawan, Visayas and Mindanao. This weather system will bring light to moderate rain showers in Western Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, CARAGA and the provinces of Palawan. Aside from the rain showers, humid weather is also expected to prevail today.

The rest of Luzon, including Metro Manila, will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rains or thunderstorms. PAGASA Weather Forecaster Jori Loiz said Metro Manila is not directly affected by the southwest monsoon. The rain showers, which mostly occur in the afternoon or evening, are due to thunderstorms activity.

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At 12 midnight, Typhoon Ineng left the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR). However, it will still enhance the southwest monsoon, locally known as habagat.

Habagat will bring monsoon rains in Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon. Light to moderate rains will be experienced in the western section of Visayas, while the rest of the country will have fair weather apart from isolated rains and thunderstorms.

#walangpasok | August 24, 2015

Due to Typhoon Ineng, classes are suspended in all levels in the following areas:

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Cyclone Pam raged in the South Pacific island nation, Vanuatu. The category 5 cyclone has been compared to Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) that devastated Central Philippines back in November 2013.

BBC News Asia reported that up to 90% of infrastructure were drastically shattered in the Pacific Island’s state capital Port Vila. The situation in the area was described into one word, “apocalyptic”, Red Cross Spokesperson said.

courtesy of: NBC.News.com
courtesy of: NBC.News.com

With winds of up to 165 mph, Pam swerved off from its forecast track damaging populated areas on Friday night. Like what happened during the nightmare of Yolanda, communities were wiped out.

For better comparison, let us go into the details of Pam’s and Yolanda’s (Haiyan) similarities.

courtesy: NOAA/NASA
courtesy: NOAA/NASA
courtesy: Joint Typhoon Warning Center
courtesy: Joint Typhoon Warning Center

Point #1: Winds
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) has recorded windspeeds 190 miles per hour for Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) during its landfall. Cyclone Pam was reported to have moved at 165 mph as it battered Central and Southern Vanuatu.

Point #2: Pressure
According to JTWC, Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) has a reported central pressure of 895 millibars upon making its landfall on November 7, 2013. Meanwhile, Cyclone Pam is at 899 millibars as of 11 PM on March 13 as reported by the Fiji Meteorological Service.

Specifics shows slight differences between Cyclone Pam and Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan). However, the disparity were of no value considering the annihilation they both brought.

Moving in a west northwest direction at 25 kilometers per hour, a tropical storm with international name “Bavi” is now being monitored by PAGASA. According to Weather Forecaster Gener Quitlong, as of 8:00AM today, it was located at approximately 3,870 kilometers east of Mindanao.

“Bavi” is still too far to affect the country but if it maintains its speed and direction, it is expected to enter our boundary by Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning next week. All are advised to monitor updates and further development.

MTSAT Image from: http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/mtsat/twpac/rb-l.jpg
MTSAT Image from: http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/mtsat/twpac/rb-l.jpg

Meanwhile, compared to yesterday, the northeast monsoon or amihan has slightly weakened. It will affect Northern and Central Luzon, bringing cloudy skies with light rains over Cagayan Valley, the Cordillera Administrative Region and the province of Aurora. Metro Manila and the rest of the country will have generally fair weather aside from possible isolated rain showers or thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening.

MTSAT Image from PAGASA.
MTSAT Image from PAGASA.

As amihan weakens, coastal waters throughout the archipelago will have slight to moderate conditions. Though gale warning was already lifted, all fishing boats and other small sea craft are still advised to be cautious in venturing out into the sea.

The presence of the prevailing amihan also affected the temperatures in Luzon but these were not as low as the previous records. Here are the lowest temperatures recorded in the Philippines yesterday, March 12, 2015:

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The northeast monsoon is still the dominant weather system inside the PH boundary.

Today, the islands of Batanes, Calayan and Babuyan will have partly cloudy skies with light precipitation. Meanwhile the rest of the country including Metro Manila will have favorable weather conditions, however PAGASA suggests continuous monitoring as isolated rains and thunderstorms are expected to happen within the day.

The state weather bureau is also monitoring the progress of El Nino. According to PAGASA Meteorologist Buddy Javier, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has a reported weak El Nino. However, the full details regarding the matter will be discussed today at the conference to be held at PAGASA.

MTSAT Image from PAGASA.
MTSAT Image from PAGASA.

March 11, 2011: The Great East Japan Quake and Tsunami

Exactly four years ago, the people of Northeast Japan experienced the darkest and longest six minutes of their lives as a 9.0 magnitude earthquake shook their homes, setting off a chain of catastrophic events that killed 15,703 people and destroyed $300 billion worth of properties.

Let us remember the key events that unfolded on those fateful days, which began on March 11, 2011.

The low pressure area (LPA) monitored outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) has already weakened into cloud clusters. As of now, no weather disturbance is affecting any part of the country.

The ridge of a high pressure area prevails over Northern Luzon, bringing fair weather over Cagayan Valley, and the Cordillera and Ilocos Regions. Metro Manila and the rest of the archipelago will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms.

PAGASA Weather Forecaster Samuel Duran said this ridge will continue to affect the Philippines in the next coming days as we approach the official hot and dry season. The prevailing presence of the high pressure area causes rising temperatures in most parts of the country including Metro Manila.

MTSAT Image from JMA.
MTSAT Image from JMA.

Yesterday, a scorching temperature of 33.5 degrees Celsius was recorded at 1:50 PM at the PAGASA Science Garden, Quezon City. For today’s temperature, Metro Manila will experience 21 to 33 degrees Celsius while Metro Cebu can expect 25 to 31 degrees Celsius. A range of 25 to 33 degrees Celsius is expected over Metro Davao.

Avalanche forms over Afghanistan

More than 100 people have died in Afghanistan due to an avalanche triggered by heavy winter snow. The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) defined an avalanche as a rapid flow of snow down a hill or mountainside. It occurs in certain times of the year particularly during the Winter Season.

Meanwhile, according to the National Disasters Association (NDA), the avalanche is derived from the French word “avalance” which means descent. It is a mass of snow, sometimes mixed with ice and debris travelling down the mountainside.

According to PAGASA Weather Forecaster Samuel Duran, it is also called a “snow slide,” similar to landslide but instead of soil or rocks, snow and ice falls down from the mountainous areas.

Deadly avalanches in Panjshir province, Afghanistan