Weather: Potential cyclone off Mindanao intensifies

A potential cyclone off Mindanao intensified early Monday and may become a possible threat to Mindanao in 24 hours, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said. PAGASA forecaster Ben Oris said their models show there is a great chance the disturbance, now an active low-pressure area (ALPA), will become a cyclone. "Ito malaking chance. Ito sa loob ng 24 oras [ay] maaaring maging isang bagyo... ito ay (tatawaging) 'Ramon' pag naging bagyo (It has a great chance of becoming a cyclone in 24 hours. If it does so, it will be codenamed 'Ramon')," he said in an interview on dZBB radio. He said their models indicate the potential cyclone may affect Hinatuan and possibly the Davao areas in Mindanao. Oris also said there is a chance the potential cyclone may move west-northwest and threaten the Visayas, the Bicol Region, and even Central Luzon. "Tatawid ito [sa] kalupaan kung maging bagyo. Maaaring Visayas o Bicol, maaaring ganyan, Central Luzon and then sa susunod na 24 hours west-northwest na (Once it becomes a cyclone, it may make landfall and move west northwest. It may cross the Visayas or Bicol, or even Central Luzon)," he said. As of 2 a.m. Monday, he said the ALPA was estimated at 680 km east of Mindanao, embedded along the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) affecting Luzon and the Visayas. In its 5 a.m. bulletin, PAGASA said the whole country will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms becoming cloudy with widespread rains over Palawan which may trigger flash floods and landslides. PAGASA added that moderate to strong winds blowing from the east will prevail over northern Luzon and its coastal waters will be moderate to rough. Meanwhile, light to moderate winds blowing from the northeast will prevail over the rest of Luzon and coming from the northeast to north over the Visayas and Mindanao. The coastal waters along these areas will be slight to moderate. — RSJ, GMA News