‘Pablo’ a typhoon — again

MANILA, Philippines – Tropical cyclone “Pablo,” already declared a tropical storm, has regained strength afternoon of Friday, December 7, and is once again a typhoon

In the 5pm bulletin of the weather bureau Pagasa, Pablo was located at 530 km Northwest of Coron, Palawan or 445 West of Subic, Zambales (14.9°N,115.8°E), with maximum sustained winds of 120 km/h and gustiness of up to 150 km/h.

Based on Pagasa’s classification, a tropical cyclone is considered a tropical storm if it has a maximum wind speed of between 64 to 118 km/h, and is considered a typhoon if its maximum wind speed exceeds 118 km/h.

Pagasa declared Pablo as a tropical storm Thursday when its maximum sustained winds dropped to 115km/h.

Pablo, the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year, made landfall in the country on Tuesday, December 4, carrying maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h, and gusts of up to 210 km/h.

According to Pagasa’s latest bulletin, Pablo is forecast to move North Northeast at 7 kph.

The weather bureau added that the northeast moonsoon will affect weather in Northern Luzon, while an intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) will affect Mindanao.

Western Visayas and Mindanao will be cloudy with light to moderate rainshowers and thunderstorms. Cagayan Valley and the regions of Ilocos and Cordillera will have light rains, while Metro Manila and the rest of the country will be partly cloudy with brief rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong winds blowing from the Northeast will prevail over Northern Luzon and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the East to Southeast with slight to moderate seas.

Strong to gale force wind is expected to affect the seaboards of Northern Luzon and the Western seaboard of Central and Southern Luzon. – Rappler.com

PAGASA 24-Hour Public Weather Forecast, 7 Dec 2012, 5pm