MANILA – A new tropical storm has entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), bringing the potential for gale-force winds and heavy rains to parts of northern Luzon in the coming days.
Tropical Storm Marce, the 13th cyclone to hit the Philippines this year, packed maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour (kph) near its center and gusts up to 80 kph as of Monday morning, according to the state weather bureau PAGASA.
The storm was located about 935 kilometers east of the Eastern Visayas region as of 4 a.m. local time. While no tropical cyclone wind signals have been raised yet, PAGASA said Signal No. 1 could be hoisted over portions of Cagayan on Tuesday.
“Marce moving northwest could enhance the northeasterly wind flow this week,” PAGASA said in its bulletin. This is expected to bring gale-force gusts across the northern regions of Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Ilocos Norte, Aurora, and the northern part of Quezon province.
Rough seas are also anticipated over the seaboards of Batanes and Ilocos Norte, prompting PAGASA to advise small sea vessels and motor bancas to avoid venturing out.
The storm’s trough could also trigger rains over extreme Northern Luzon and the eastern section of the main island starting Tuesday. However, PAGASA noted that Marce’s forecast track remains highly uncertain, with the possibility of it either moving west toward northern Luzon or remaining erratic over the Philippine Sea.
“A westward shift in track is likely within the next 24 hours due to the high-pressure area north of Marce. As such, the landfall scenario may change from Babuyan Islands down to the Isabela area,” the agency said.
PAGASA also warned that Tropical Storm Marce is expected to intensify and could reach typhoon category by Wednesday.
Residents in the potentially affected areas are advised to monitor updates from the weather bureau and local disaster risk reduction agencies, and to take necessary precautions against the threat of strong winds, heavy rains, and rough seas.
