By Alec Go
Super Typhoon Hinnamnor may enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility over the northern boundary on Wednesday night, Aug. 31, or early Thursday, Sept. 1 , which will be given its domestic name “Henry.”
It is forecast “to decelerate while tracking generally westsouthwestward or southwestward over the sea southeast of the Ryukyu Islands” and may further decelerate over the northern Philippine Sea.
Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) weather specialist Raymond Ordinario said they are monitoring the extreme Northern Luzon area.
“Kapag sumubsob pa nang husto itong super typhoon, possible worst-case scenario ay Signal No. 3 over the extreme Northern Luzon area which is Batanes,” he said.
“May scenario rin na possible na kumilos ito papalayo… Pinakamalapit na ang ating bagyo on Friday sa extreme Northern Luzon area,” he added.
As of 10:00 a.m., the super typhoon is located 980 kilometers (km) northeast of extreme Northern Luzon with maximum sustained winds of 195 km/h and gustiness of up to 240 km/h.
By late Thursday through Friday, it will become almost stationary before moving toward the north.
“Ang crucial date natin is on Friday and weekend dahil titingnan din natin kapag nandito ang bagyo, possible din ‘yan maghatak ng habagat,” he said.
“‘Yan ang isa pang tinitingnan natin sa ngayon na magpapaulan mostly on the northern and central parts of Luzon,” he added.
Light to moderate rains are expected over extreme Northern Luzon late Thursday to Friday.
Meanwhile, Tropical Depression Gardo is located 1,065 km east of extreme Northern Luzon as of 10:00 a.m. and is unlikely to have a direct immediate effect on the country’s weather condition.
Gardo’s trough is bringing rains over Luzon area, specifically in the western section of Western and Southern Luzon including Metro Manila.
“Ang nangyayari kay Gardo ay kumikilos pa rin papalayo ng ating bansa. Dahil sa maliit na distansiya ng dalawang bagyo, possible na magkaroon ng binary or tropical cyclone binary interaction,” he said.
