PAGASA: More rains loom over flood-hit Maguindanao town

More rains loom over flood-hit areas of Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao province, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said Tuesday. But PAGASA forecaster Mario Palafox said the rains brought by the inter-tropical convergence zone are not expected to be as heavy as last weekend’s downpour. "May pag-ulan pa silang nararanasan although di na ganoon kalakasan (Sultan Kudarat town residents may still expect rains but no longer as heavy)," Palafox said in an interview on dzBB radio. The National Disaster Coordinating Council had said heavy rains triggered the overflowing of the Simuay River, which flooded at least 10 villages. Hit by floods were Bulalo, Salimabao, Limbo, Gang, Calsada, Banubo, Katuli, Macaguiling, Mulaog and Senditan villages. As of 6 a.m. Monday, low-lying villages including Bulalo, Calsada, Katuli, Senditan and Salimbao still experienced knee-deep floods. Evacuation centers were established and forced evacuation may be enforced if the floods reach "critical" level. Meanwhile, PAGASA said the ITCZ is affecting Visayas and Mindanao. "Visayas and Mindanao including Palawan will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms. The rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening," it said in its 5 a.m. bulletin. — LBG, GMANews.TV