RP expects first cyclone of the year on Thursday

State weather forecasters on Monday spotted a brewing weather disturbance off Mindanao, which could become the first cyclone to enter the country for the year. A report over GMA News’ “24 Oras" said “Agaton" is expected to enter the Philippine area of responsibility on Thursday. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the cyclone may not make a landfall, but would induce rains that could increase water levels of the dams that have reached critical lows because of the El Niño dry spell. In its 5 p.m. update, PAGASA said the wind convergence currently affecting Mindanao and Eastern Visayas would bring scattered rain showers and thunderstorms in the said areas.

“The rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms," PAGASA said on its Web site. “Moderate to strong winds blowing from the Northeast to Southeast will prevail over the Eastern section of Northern and Central Luzon and coming from the Northeast and East over the rest of the Eastern section of the country and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough," it added. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate blowing from the Northeast to East with slight to moderate seas. The country is experiencing up to 36-degree Celsius weather due to the El Niño phenomenon, which is wreaking havoc on many farmlands particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao. The government said damage to agriculture caused by the dry spells has gone up to P8.588 billion, even as the number of people affected continues to grow. In a March 19 report posted on its Web site, the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said the damage was recorded in Bicol, Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Davao City, South Cotabato and Maguindanao. The NDCC said the damage now involves 576,607.61 tons in production loss in 749,467.94 hectares in Luzon, Western and Central Visayas, Regions 9 to 12, and Cordillera. At least 301,135 farmers and their families had been affected because of the dry spells – 124,515 of them in Central Visayas and 117,844 in Southwestern Mindanao. Last year, three strong typhoons wrecked havoc in Luzon, resulting to hundreds of deaths and millions of pesos worth in agriculture and infrastructure damages.– Aie Balagtas See/KBK, GMANews.TV