TWO more areas have been placed under Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal (TCWS) Number 4 as Typhoon Ompong (international name Mangkhut) moved nearer the northeastern coast of Luzon.
As of 9 p.m. Friday, September 14, state weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) hoisted TCWS Number 4 over Apayao and Abra provinces in the Cordillera Administrative Region.
The bureau earlier placed Cagayan province and the northern part of Isabela province, both in Cagayan Valley, under Signal number 4.
In a Twitter post shortly before 9 p.m., Pagasa said winds of 171 to 220 kilometers per hour were expected to whip the four areas in at least 12 hours.
Waves in the open sea were forecast to reach more than 14 meters.
Batanes Island has also been placed under Signal number 3, along with Babuyan Group of Islands, southern Isabela, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Kalinga, Mountain Province, Benguet, Ifugao, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino and Northern Aurora.
These areas were forecast to experience winds of 121 to 170 kph in at least 18 hours.
Signal number 2, with winds of 61 to 120 kph in 24 hours, is hoisted over Pangasinan, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, southern Aurora, Zambales, Pampanga, Bulacan and northern Quezon, including Polillo Island.
Signal number 1, with winds of 30 to 60 kph in 36 hours, is hoisted over Bataan, Rizal, Metro Manila, Cavite, Batangas, Laguna, the rest of Quezon and northern Occidental Mindoro, including Lubang Island.
The following areas are also under Signal number 1: northern Oriental Mindoro, Masbate, Marinduque, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Albay, Sorsogon, Burias and Ticao Islands.
Tyhoon Ompong is forecast to make landfall in the Cagayan-Isabela area in the early morning of September 15.
As of 7 p.m. Friday, the eye of Typhoon Ompong was located at 260 kilometers east northeast of Casiguran, Aurora.
It is still packing maximum sustained winds of 205 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 255 kph. It is still moving northwest at 30 kph.
The weather bureau warned of storm surges, which could reach up to six meters in Cagayan early Saturday morning and Ilocos Norte; and up to two meters in Isabela (early Saturday morning) and Ilocos Sur. (MVI/SunStar Philippines)