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MANILA, Philippines – The southwest monsoon or hanging habagat will bring more rain to parts of Luzon on Wednesday, August 14.

In a bulletin issued 4 pm on Tuesday, August 13, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the southwest monsoon will affect the western sections of Northern Luzon and Central Luzon.

Scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms will persist in the following areas:

• Ilocos Region
• Cordillera Administrative Region
• Zambales
• Bataan

PAGASA advised residents to stay on alert for possible flash floods and landslides. (READ: FAST FACTS: Tropical cyclones, rainfall advisories)

Classes for Wednesday have been suspended in some areas. (READ: #WalangPasok: Class suspensions, Wednesday, August 14, 2019)

PAGASA also issued a gale warning at 5 pm on Tuesday due to the southwest monsoon.

Rough to very rough seas with wave heights reaching 2.8 meters to 4.5 meters are expected in the following areas:

• western seaboards of Northern Luzon and Central Luzon
• western coast of Ilocos Norte
• Ilocos Sur
• La Union
• Pangasinan
• Zambales
• Bataan
• northern and eastern seaboards of Northern Luzon and eastern seaboard of Central Luzon
• Batanes
• Babuyan
• Calayan
• northern coast of Ilocos Norte
• Cagayan
• Isabela
• Aurora

PAGASA said fishing boats and other small vessels should not set sail, while larger vessels must watch out for big waves.

Meanwhile, Severe Tropical Storm Krosa was last spotted 1,510 kilometers northeast of extreme Northern Luzon, outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR).

PAGASA still does not expect Krosa to enter PAR. There are no other tropical cyclones being monitored at the moment.

The Philippines has had 8 tropical cyclones in 2019, with 1 of those in August – Typhoon Hanna (Lekima). (READ: LIST: PAGASA’s names for tropical cyclones in 2019)

The country gets an average of 20 tropical cyclones annually, but since 2019 is an El Niño year, only 14 to 18 tropical cyclones are expected.

Below is the estimated number of tropical cyclones from August to December:

• August – 2 to 4
• September – 2 to 4
• October – 2 or 3
• November – 1 or 2
• December – 0 or 1

PAGASA declared the start of the rainy season last June 14. – Rappler.com