'Karen' gains strength as LPA in Zambales dissipates
-A A +AWednesday, September 12, 2012
MANILA (Updated 7:40 p.m.) -- Tropical Storm “Karen” further intensified while the low pressure area spotted west of Zambales dissipated Wednesday afternoon, the state weather agency said.
Weather forecaster Bernie De Leon of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said that as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, Karen was seen at 640 kilometers (km) east of Virac, Catanduanes moving 15 kilometers per hour (kph) toward northwest.
Karen has maximum sustained winds of 95 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 120 kph.
De Leon said while Karen has yet to affect the country, it enhanced the southwest monsoon that would bring occasional moderate to heavy rains in Ilocos, Mindoro and Western Visayas that might trigger flashfloods and landslides.
The rest of southern Luzon and of Visayas and Mindanao will be cloudy with scattered light to moderate rains. The rest of Luzon, including Metro Manila, will have partly cloudy with isolated rains or thunderstorms in the evening.
De Leon said if Karen would not change its track, it would not make a landfall in any part of the country.
He also said Karen was expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility by weekend and move toward Japan and Korea.
Pagasa has not raised public storm warning yet and no other weather disturbance was seen near the Philippine territory as of Wednesday.
The weather agency said moderate to strong winds blowing from the southwest to west will prevail over southern Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough.
Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the southwest to south with slight to moderate seas. (PNA/Sunnex)
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