PAGASA: El Niño not ending yet despite early morning rains

After days of intense heat, light rains fell on parts of Metro Manila and other parts of the country early Tuesday.

But the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) quickly said the rain showers were not due to a cyclone, or were signs that the El Niño phenomenon is about to end. PAGASA, in its 5 a.m. bulletin, indicated that rainshowers and thunderstorms are likely, even as an easterly wave is affecting Mindanao. "Mindanao, Southern Luzon and eastern section of Visayas will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms. The rest of the country will have partly cloudy to at times cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms," it said. It added moderate to occasionally strong winds blowing from the east will prevail over the eastern sections of Visayas and Mindanao and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to occasionally rough. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the east with slight to moderate seas. In the past days, Metro Manila had been hit with hot weather, including the record-setting temperature last Sunday. State weather forecasters said the hot weather will likely last until June. — LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV