Tropical Depression Ester out, but monsoon rain to persist

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MANILA, Philippines – Tropical Depression Ester left the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on Friday evening, June 15, after accelerating further.

In a bulletin issued 11 pm on Friday, state weather bureau PAGASA said Ester is already 595 kilometers north northeast of Basco, Batanes, moving east northeast at a much faster 38 kilometers per hour (km/h) from the previous 25 km/h.

The tropical depression had maximum winds of 60 km/h and gustiness of up to 75 km/h as it left PAR.

No areas were placed under tropical cyclone warning signals while Ester was inside PAR for roughly a day, since the tropical depression did not make landfall in the Philippines.

But even if it is already outside PAR, Ester will continue to enhance the southwest monsoon until the weekend.

The southwest monsoon enhanced by Ester will trigger moderate to heavy rain in the Ilocos Region, the Cordillera Administrative Region, Batanes, the Babuyan Group of Islands, Zambales, and Bataan.

Residents of areas affected by the enhanced southwest monsoon should remain on alert for floods and landslides, especially those in low-lying or mountainous areas. (READ: FAST FACTS: Tropical cyclones, rainfall advisories)

Sea travel is still risky in the seaboards of Northern Luzon and the western seaboard of Central Luzon.

So far, PAGASA has not monitored any potential tropical cyclone after Ester.

The state weather bureau had declared the start of the rainy season last June 8. – Rappler.com