Tropical Storm Caloy not going to make landfall in PH

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MANILA, Philippines – A tropical storm with the international name Jelawat entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) at 8 am on Holy Tuesday, March 27, becoming the country’s 3rd tropical cyclone for 2018. It has been given the local name Caloy.

In a bulletin issued past 11 am on Tuesday, state weather bureau PAGASA said Caloy is already 1,015 kilometers east of Surigao City, Surigao del Norte, moving north northwest at 15 kilometers per hour (km/h).

The tropical storm has maximum winds of 65 km/h near the center and gustiness of up to 80 km/h.

Based on its latest forecast track, Caloy will not make landfall in any part of the Philippines. It is expected to move upwards instead of heading for the country, or what PAGASA described as its “recurving track.”

Since Caloy is located far from land, there are no areas under tropical cyclone warning signals. (READ: FAST FACTS: Tropical cyclones, rainfall advisories)

The forecast is good news, especially for Holy Week travelers heading for provinces or tourist destinations.

Caloy is expected to leave PAR on Maundy Thursday, March 29.

Caloy isn’t the first tropical cyclone to enter PAR during Holy Week. Back in 2015, for instance, there was Typhoon Chedeng (Maysak). (READ: Holy Week storms in the Philippines)

March and April, however, are among the months least visited by tropical cyclones. The Philippines gets an average of 20 tropical cyclones a year, with most of these from July to September.

In a special weather advisory earlier released for Holy Week, PAGASA said generally good weather will prevail from Holy Wednesday, March 28, until Black Saturday, March 31. There will only be isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms. – Rappler.com