Rainy week ahead for Western Luzon, Visayas

A LOW pressure area over the South China Sea is expected to bring rains and thunderstorms over the western sections of Luzon and Visayas this week, state weather forecasters said on Monday.

In an update, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) spotted the latest weather disturbance at 330 kilometers west of Iba, Zambales.

Though it is not expected to turn into a storm, Pagasa said the public must be wary of possible flashfloods and landslides that will be triggered by heavy rains.

Foreign weather agencies such as the Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) and the Hawaii-based US Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) did not monitor tropical cyclone development over the Pacific Ocean this week.

Massive loss of life and property was averted last week after Typhoon Chedeng (international codename: Songda) skirted through parts of Northern Luzon.

However, the typhoon enhanced the southwest monsoon and signaled the entry of the four-month rainy season.

As of 8 p.m. Sunday, four people were declared dead by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Damage to agriculture and infrastructure was pegged at P12.329 million as the typhoon affected nearly 400,000 people in seven cities and 10 provinces.

As of Monday, only Taguig City has evacuees with 38 families or 190 individuals. They were rescued after their houses were submerged in flood water last week. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)