Gloomy weekend in Cebu

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration warned of a gloomy weekend ahead in Cebu.

PAGASA-Cebu officer-in-charge Alfredo Quiblat Jr. said that the heavy downpour experienced in Cebu since Friday may continue to persist until tomorrow. He said the series of rain events and cloudy skies are effects of the Low Pressure Area hovering near the country.

Quiblat said that at 11 a.m. yesterday, the LPA was spotted travelling the Philippine waters about 350 kilometers east of Guiuan town, Eastern Samar. According to yesterday’s weather analysis, Quiblat said the LPA will neither reach the landmass nor develop into a tropical cyclone.

He explained that another weather disturbance outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) - typhoon Jebi – will draw the LPA towards its direction. The LPA may either dissipate or fuse with the disturbance, he added.

Typhoon Jebi, on the other hand, may possibly enter PAR by Sunday but will only cross the northeast edge of the boundary, said Quiblat. It is forecasted to leave PAR by Monday. Typhoon Jebi was last seen at 10 a.m. yesterday outside PAR, about 2,300 kilometers east of northern Luzon, moving westward at the speed of 25 kilometers per hour.

Because of the existing condition, Cebu province and other areas in Central Visayas are expected to experience cloudy skies, light to moderate rains or occasional heavy rains. Disaster managers and other concerned offices are advised to carry on measures to mitigate the impacts of possible natural hazards like flooding and landslide.

He said the effects from the trough of LPA may last until tomorrow. Fair weather is expected on Monday. An average of two to three tropical cyclones is expected to develop and enter PAR every August and September according to the data of PAGASA.

At least six to eight tropical cyclones are also forecasted to develop from September 2018 to February 2019.