'Perla' maintains strength as it nears Philippine Area of Responsibility exit

MANILA, Philippines—PAGASA on Sunday said Typhoon “Perla (International name: Neoguri” maintained its strength as it slightly accelerates north northeastward.

As of 10 a.m., the eye of “Perla” was traced at 750 kilometers east northeast of Basco, Batanes.

It packs maximum sustained winds of up to 140 km per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 170 kph.

The typhoon is moving north northeast at 20 kph and is expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility between Sunday evening and early Monday morning.

“It is forecast to weaken throughout the forecast period and transition into an extratropical low by Tuesday,” the state weather bureau said.

PAGASA said there is no tropical cyclone wind signal raised but extreme northern Luzon may experience occasional gusts due to the prevailing northeasterly surface wind flow.

It warned the public that sea travel is risky over the seaboards of Northern Luzon especially for small sea vessels. The potentially rough sea conditions is also associated with the northeasterly surface wind flow.

Meanwhile, the Severe Tropical Storm “Bualoi” (meaning a Thai dessert) PAGASA is monitoring is already outside PAR.

The weather agency said “Bualoi” is less likely to enter PAR.

At 10 a.m., Bualoi was located at 2,825 km east of Visayas. It packs maximum sustained winds of 95 kph near the center and gustiness of up to kph.

The severe tropical storm is heading west northwest at 20 kph. —Rosette Adel