Domeng weakens as it moves closer to Mindanao

MANILA, Philippines - Tropical Storm Domeng (international name Peipah) weakened and slowed down as it moved closer to Mindanao yesterday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

PAGASA weather forecaster Gener Quitlong said Domeng was downgraded to a tropical depression yesterday afternoon.

He said the disturbance was forecast to make landfall over Surigao del Sur on Thursday evening.

As of 4 p.m., Domeng was spotted at 670 km east of Davao City with maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour near the center.

“It could still regain strength as it is still over the sea,” Quitlong said.

Domeng was forecast to move west-northwest at 13 kph.

Quitlong said Mindanao and eastern and central Visayas will have cloudy skies with scattered rains and thunderstorms.

He said Cagayan Valley will also experience cloudy skies with scattered rains due to the tail-end of a cold front.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country will have partly cloudy skies with isolated rains and thunderstorms.

The Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH) of the Department of Science and Technology issued yesterday a storm surge warning in over 100 areas in the Visayas, including Cebu and Leyte, due to Domeng.

Blue alert

Meanwhile, Northern Mindanao and the Bicol region over the weekend raised their disaster alert level to blue with the approaching cyclone.

With the blue alert status enforced, all disaster personnel and responders in the two regions have been advised to be ready and on call in the event that Domeng intensifies, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) based at Camp Aguinaldo said.

The OCD added that in Ozamis City, Misamis Occidental, 51 barangays have been alerted for possible flooding due to the prevailing weather system. – With Jaime Laude