A farmer dries her laundry near a farm in barangay Sirao, Cebu City. (CDN PHOTO/ JUNJIE MENDOZA)
RECENT days have been hot for a rainy season, with temperatures reaching more than 33 degrees Celsius.
“The normal weather temperature for the rainy season is 26 to 31 degrees Celsius,” said Alfredo Quiblat, Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services (Pagasa) Mactan chief.
In July, the hottest day was on the 18th with a temperature of 33.4 degrees Celsius. Yesterday’s temperature was 33.3 degrees Celsius.
The heat index, the temperature actually felt by the body, will be four degrees higher due to factors like humidity and the surrounding environment.
Expect thunderstorms mostly in the evening but the rest of the day will be sunny and cloudy, he said.
The El Niño pattern has intensified to a moderate level, following a 1.4-degree Celsius increase in surface temperatures in Central and Eastern Pacific, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said.
READ: Cebu is high risk area for El Niño: Acosta | Cebu in top 12 El Niño zones
Oscar Tabada, Pagasa Visayas director, said Cebu would experience below normal rainfall in July and August. By November, rains will be way below normal.
Pagasa advised the public to continue to store and conserve water.
Virgilio Jakosalem, chief of operations at the Provincial Agriculture Office, said the corn they planted in three experimental fields in the towns of San Remegio and Sogod as well as in Bogo City did not grow because of the dry spell.
Cebu City Office of the Building Official (OBO) head Jose Marie Poblete urged building owners to install a cistern to catch water as required in a city ordinance. Other residents should store water in drums. /PIT Intern Jay-Ileen Engalla and UP Cebu Intern Mary Claire U. Catado