NAIA briefly suspends operations due to red lightning alert

Flight and ground operations at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport were briefly suspended on Wednesday after PAGASA issued a red lightning alert.

According to the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), PAGASA issued the red lightning alert at 12:37 p.m. It was lifted and downgraded to yellow alert at 1:07 p.m.

MIAA said the advisory was issued as a safety measure taken “to prevent untoward incidents from happening when lightning is prevalent in the immediate area and may endanger personnel, passengers, and even flight operations”.

In its latest bulletin, PAGASA said wind signals may be hoisted over several areas in north Luzon starting Wednesday evening or Thursday morning due to Tropical Depression Obet.

Heavy rains, meanwhile, may be expected over Batanes, Cagayan including Babuyan Islands, Apayao, and Ilocos Norte due to the shear line.

Obet was last seen 1,025 kilometers east of extreme Northern Luzon as of 10 a.m. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 45 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 55 km/h while moving north-northwestward at 15 km/h.—Sundy Locus/LDF, GMA News