Brace for more rains in VisMin – Pagasa

MANILA, Philippines -  Several areas remain flooded, but residents of the Visayas and Mindanao should brace for more rains due to an approaching low-pressure area (LPA), the state weather bureau said yesterday. 

The LPA was spotted 1,845 kilometers east southeast of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur as of 8 a.m. yesterday, said Rene Paciente, senior weather forecaster at the Philippine Atmosheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

Paciente said the weather system would bring light to heavy rains over the eastern sections of the Visayas and Mindanao from tomorrow until early Sunday. 

He said the LPA has a slim chance of developing into a cyclone and might veer to the north due to the presence of a trough or a frontal system. 

Cloudy skies with light to moderate rains and isolated thunderstorms will be experienced over Metro Manila, Isabela, Aurora, Rizal and Quezon. 

Paciente said the northeast monsoon would continue to bring cloudy skies with light rains over Ilocos, Cordillera as well as  the rest of Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon.

Still flooded

Meanwhile, floodwaters caused by heavy rains due to an LPA and the tail-end of a cold front last week have yet to subside in several areas in Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur.

A total of 12,643 families or 61,364 individuals in the two provinces remained in evacuation centers.

PAGASA officials said the abnormal rainfall in Mindanao was caused by a La Niña-like condition, which would continue until next month. 

Four provinces, 18 towns and a city in Caraga were affected by flooding. 

The water level in Agusan River rose, resulting in flashfloods in Butuan City and the towns of La Paz, Esperanza, Talacogon, Las Nieves, San Luis, Rosario, Bunawan and Veruela.                

 The  Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Disaster Response Operations and Monitoring and Information Center reported that as of 2 a.m. yesterday,  55,824 families or 214,433 persons in 182 barangays in Northern Mindanao and Caraga were affected.

At least P8.4 million in assistance had been provided by the DSWD, local government units and non-government organizations to affected families. – With Rainier Allan Ronda