Tropical Storm Jongdari unlikely to enter PAR

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MANILA, Philippines – The tropical storm with the international name Jongdari is now unlikely to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), based on its forecast track as of Wednesday morning, July 25.

Jongdari would’ve been locally named Karding inside PAR. It was still a tropical depression on Tuesday, July 24, then later intensified into a tropical storm.

In a bulletin released past 11 am on Wednesday, state weather bureau PAGASA said Jongdari is already located 1,545 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes. It is slowly moving east northeast, a direction that’s away from the PAR boundary.

The tropical storm has maximum winds of 65 kilometers per hour (km/h) and gustiness of up to 80 km/h.

Since Jongdari is outside PAR, it has no direct effect on the country.

What’s bringing light to moderate rain to parts of Luzon and the Visayas on Wednesday is the southwest monsoon or hanging habagat.

In a 4 am bulletin, PAGASA said the southwest monsoon would bring occasional rains to Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, and Western Visayas.

Scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms are also expected in Bicol and Eastern Visayas.

The rest of the country will only have isolated thunderstorms. (READ: FAST FACTS: Tropical cyclones, rainfall advisories)

Areas affected by the southwest monsoon should stay on alert for flash floods and landslides, though the rains are expected to be considerably less compared to the torrential downpours last week, which triggered massive floods and forced thousands of people to evacuate.

The Philippines has had 10 tropical cyclones in 2018, so far, with 4 of them in July alone – Typhoon Gardo (Maria), Tropical Storm Henry (Son-Tinh), Severe Tropical Storm Inday (Ampil), and Tropical Depression Josie.

The country usually gets an average of 20 tropical cyclones per year. (READ: LIST: PAGASA’s names for tropical cyclones in 2018)

PAGASA declared the start of the rainy season last June 8. – Rappler.com