Get your umbrellas ready as it well be wet in Cebu in the next three days, with flash floods projected in many low-lying areas in Metro Cebu, induced by a low pressure area (LPA) spotted off the island of Samar on Sunday.
The intermittent rain that poured over Metro Cebu over the weekend already caused flooding in some streets in Cebu City on Sunday after a heavy downpour that lasted for an hour. People had to wait for the water to recede before crossing Colon Street on Sunday.
Moderate to heavy rain were also recorded in the town of Minglanilla and Talisay City in the south, and in Cordova and Lapu-Lapu City on Mactan Island.
According to the state weather bureau, Metro Cebu and the Visayas region will continue to experience rains and thunderstorms today until Wednesday, especially in the afternoons. The rains may trigger flooding in low-lying areas.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) station on Mactan Island said Cebu’s weather condition is influenced by the LPA that was spotted 505 kilometers northeast of Borongan City, Eastern Samar, as of 4 p.m. on Sunday, according to Pagasa.
The LPA is causing cloudy skies, light to moderate rains and occasional thunderstorms over Cebu, Bicol, Northern Mindanao, Caraga and Palawan.
“Everyone is advised to bring umbrellas and rain gears. We can expect rain in the afternoon due to the the low pressure area,” said Pagasa-Mactan Officer-in-charge Al Quiblat.
Quiblat added that the LPA is less likely to develop into a tropical depression.
As of 3 p.m. on Saturday, Pagasa-Mactan already recorded 122 millimeters of rain in Cebu. The month of September is forecasted to bring an average rainfall of 170 mm.
Light to moderate winds blowing from the northeast to northwest will also prevail over Visayas.
Aside from the LPA, Pagasa was also monitoring the movement of Tropical Storm Lannie (International name: Talim), which is set to enter the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) early Monday morning, with maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour and gustiness of up to 80 kph.
Based on Pagasa data, Lannie is moving 25 kph west-northwest and may affect extreme northern Luzon.
“(But) Lannie is not expected to make a landfall in the Philippines. As of Saturday, it is spotted 1470 kilometers east of southern Luzon and is expected to move to Taiwan,” Quiblat said.
He added that the tropical storm will not have a direct effect on Cebu and Visayas, but it may enhance the southwest monsoon or habagat.
By Thursday, September 14, Cebu will have better weather condition — sunny and partly cloudy skies, Quiblat said.