Signal No. 2 still up over Batanes, parts of Cagayan due to Betty

Batanes and portions of Cagayan remain under Storm Signal No. 2 as Typhoon Betty continues to move slowly northwestward over the Philippine waters, PAGASA said on Monday night.

According to its 11 p.m. severe weather bulletin, gale force winds with speeds of 62 to 88 kilometers per hour (km/h) will be felt over the following areas where Signal No. 2 has been raised:

• Batanes
• The northeastern portion of Cagayan (Santa Ana, Gonzaga) including the Babuyan Islands

Strong winds with speeds of 39 to 61 km/h, meanwhile, will be experienced in the following areas where Signal No. 1 has been hoisted:

• Rest of mainland Cagayan
• Isabela
• Apayao
• Kalinga
• Abra
• Kalinga

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• The eastern portion of Mountain Province (Paracelis, Natonin, Sadanga, Barlig)
• Northern of Aurora (Dilasag, Casiguran)

PAGASA said the center of the eye of Betty was estimated 440 km east of Calayan, Cagayan, or 385 km East of Basco, Batanes as of 10 p.m.

It is slowly heading north-northwestward while packing maximum sustained winds of 155 km/h near the center, gustiness of up to 190 km/h, and a central pressure of 950 hPa.

Strong to typhoon-force winds extend outwards up to 630 km from the center, it added.

Heavy accumulated rainfall of up to 50 to 100 millimeters is expected in Batanes, Babuyan Islands, the northern portion of mainland Cagayan, the northern portion of Ilocos Norte, the southern portion of Ilocos Sur, and the northern portion of La Union due to the typhoon.

The enhanced Southwest Monsoon will also bring occasional gusts in the next 24 hours over the Bicol Region, Western Visayas, Quezon, Mindoro Provinces, Marinduque, Romblon, Northern Samar, and the rest of Cordillera Administrative Region, and Aurora that are not under any storm signal.

“Under these conditions, flooding and rain-induced landslides are possible, especially in areas that are highly or very highly susceptible to these hazards as identified in hazard maps and in localities that experienced considerable amounts of rainfall for the past several days,” the weather bureau warned.

A marine gale warning also remains in effect over the northern and eastern seaboards of Northern Luzon, eastern seaboards of Central Luzon, the eastern and southern seaboards of Southern Luzon, the eastern and western seaboards of Visayas, and the eastern seaboard of Mindanao due to Betty.

Based on its forecast track, the tropical cyclone is forecast to generally move slowly between Monday evening and Wednesday as it turns more northward over the waters east of Batanes.

Betty then will gradually accelerate north-northeastward on Thursday and northeastward on Friday before possibly exiting the Philippine Area of Responsibility.  

PAGASA expects the typhoon to steadily weaken over the next five days due to cooler ocean waters and dry air intrusion.

It may be downgraded into a severe tropical storm on late Thursday or early Friday and into a tropical storm on late Friday or early Saturday. —NB, GMA Integrated News