Storm signal No. 1 raised over extreme northern Luzon

MANILA, Philippines - The state weather bureau raised public storm warning signal No. 1 over areas in extreme Northern Luzon as Typhoon Hanna (international name Soudelor) moved closer to the region yesterday.

As of 5 p.m., signal No. 1 was hoisted over Batanes, including Itbayat, and over Calayan and Babuyan group of islands in Cagayan, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

PAGASA weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio said the typhoon was expected to bring rains and gusty winds over these areas beginning last night.

Although Hanna slightly weakened yesterday afternoon, it would still dump moderate to heavy rains within its 700-km diameter, he said.

As of 4 p.m., the eye of the typhoon was spotted at 715 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes, packing winds of 165 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 200 kph.

In a press briefing yesterday afternoon, Aurelio said Hanna continued to move west-northwest at 20 kph toward Taiwan.

He said the typhoon was not expected to hit landmass but it would continue to pull the moisture-laden southwest monsoon that would dump rains and occasionally strong winds in many parts of the country, including Metro Manila, until next week.

Aurelio said the southwest monsoon, which was being enhanced by Hanna, would start to bring light to moderate rains over Metro Manila, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) and the rest of Bicol region today until the weekend.

Heavy rains are expected over these areas on Sunday, he said.

He also warned residents of Palawan, the Visayas and Mindanao against possible flashfloods and landslides as rains would continue to affect the areas in the next few days. These areas have been experiencing rains in the past weeks due to the inter-tropical convergence zone.