By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
After maintaining a near-idle position earlier Monday, Pilandok maintained its strength and speed as it continued on a highly uncertain forecast track.
In PAGASA’s 5:00 p.m. update, Pilandok was last located 1,145 km east of Extreme Northern Luzon, packing maximum sustained winds of 55 kph and gustiness of up to 70 kph as it moves west-northwestward at 10 kph.
Due to its distance from the Philippine landmass, no wind signals or gale warnings were issued by PAGASA. However, the state weather bureau advised very rough seas over the western seaboards of Babuyan Islands and Ilocos Norte, with waves reaching up to 4.5 meters high.
Fisherfolk and owners of small vessels are likewise advised not to venture out to open waters due to rough seas over the following coastal waters:
- Up to 4.0 m: The seaboards of Batanes and northern Ilocos Sur; the northern seaboard of Babuyan Islands.
- Up to 3.5 m: The seaboards of northern La Union and Zambales; the western seaboards of Pangasinan and Bataan; the remaining seaboard of Ilocos Sur.
- Up to 3.0 m: The western seaboards of Cavite, Batangas, Lubang Islands, northern Occidental Mindoro, and Calamian Islands; the southern seaboard of Bataan; the northern and western seaboards of Kalayaan Islands.
Tropical Depression Pilandok is forecast to become almost stationary for the next 36 hours before turning north-northwestward for the remainder of the forecast period, with the weather system’s track expected to change dramatically in the succeeding bulletins.
PAGASA, likewise, added that the weather system is less likely to make landfall over any part of the country and will remain distant from the Philippine landmass—but may intensify into a tropical storm on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the state weather bureau is currently monitoring two other weather disturbances outside the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR).
As of 2:00 p.m., a tropical depression was last located 570 km west-northwest of Itbayat, Batanes, packing maximum sustained winds of 45 kph and gustiness of up to 60 kph as it is moving almost stationarily.
An LPA was also spotted 3,080 km east of southeastern Luzon, with a medium chance of becoming a tropical depression in the next 24 hours.
These weather systems are expected to enhance the effects of southwest monsoon (habagat), which continues to bring rainfall over several regions in the Philippines.
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