Signal No. 1 still hoisted over Batanes

MANILA, Philippines - The state weather bureau yesterday advised fishermen not to venture  out to the northern and eastern seaboards of Luzon due to big waves generated by Typhoon Huaning (international name Soulik).

Storm warning signal number one remained hoisted over the Batanes group of islands as of 5 p.m. yesterday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

PAGASA said Huaning gained strength as it continued to move west-northwest toward northern Taiwan yesterday afternoon.

As of 4 p.m., the eye of the typhoon was spotted at 690 kilometers east-northeast of Itbayat, Batanes with maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 220 kph.

It was forecast to move west-northwest at 20 kph.

PAGASA said the Batanes group of islands will experience rains with gusty winds in the next 24 hours.

The regions of Cordillera, western Visayas, Zamboanga peninsula and northern Mindanao will have cloudy skies with light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorms.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Huaning was forecast to bring heavy rain (10 to 46 millimeters per hour) within its 900-km radius.

It is predicted to be 410 km northeast of Itbayat this afternoon and 540 km north-northwest of Itbayat or 170 km northwest of northern Taiwan, outside the Philippine area of responsibility, by tomorrow afternoon.

Huaning is the eighth tropical cyclone to enter the country this year and the first weather disturbance this month.