MANILA — Typhoon ‘Gorio’ (international name ‘Nesat’) slightly accelerated and is about to make a landfall over Taiwan, Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said in its Severe Weather Bulletin 14 released Saturday afternoon (July 29).
PAGASA located ‘Gorio’ at 360 km north of Batanes province’s capital Basco municipality as of 4 p.m. Saturday.
‘Gorio’ then packed maximum sustained winds of 145 kph near its center and gustiness of up to 180 kph, noted PAGASA.
PAGASA estimated moderate to heavy rainfall within the 500-km diameter of ‘Gorio.’
According to PAGASA, ‘Gorio’ will likely move northwestwards at 19 kph.
The agency forecast ‘Gorio’ to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) this Sunday morning (July 30).
‘Gorio’ and the tropical storm with international name ‘Haitang’ will continue enhancing the southwest monsoon or ‘habagat.’
The enhanced ‘habagat’ will bring moderate to occasionally heavy rain over western sections of Northern and Central Luzon, noted PAGASA.
Sea travel is risky off Northern Luzon’s seaboard as well as Central and Southern Luzon’s western seaboards, PAGASA warned.
PAGASA located ‘Haitang’ outside PAR at 370 km west of Ilocos Norte province’s Laoag City, packing maximum sustained winds of 90 kph near its center and gustiness of up to 115 kph.
‘Haitang’ is expected to move northeast at 20 kph, said PAGASA.
Given such developments, government already lifted tropical cyclone warning signal (TCWS) 1 over Babuyan Islands.
Government also lowered the TCWS in Batanes from 2 to 1 but warned waves there can still reach 4.0 meters high. Catherine J. Teves/PNA-northboundasia.com