Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 16) — Tropical Depression Ofel is now outside the country’s monitoring area, but rains and strong winds will continue to persist in many parts of the country, according to the state weather bureau.
The southwest monsoon may bring cloudy skies with scattered rains in northern Mindanao, Mimaropa, Zamboanga peninsula, Bangsamoro region, Western Visayas, and Central Visayas, PAGASA forecaster Raymond Ordinario told CNN Philippines’ New Day on Friday.
Meanwhile, cloudy skies with isolated rains may prevail in the Cagayan Valley and Cordillera Administrative Region due to the Northeasterly Surface Windflow.
Batanes, Babuyan Islands, Kalayaan Islands and the northern coastal and mountainous areas of mainland Cagayan, Apayao, Ilocos Norte, and southern Palawan are also seen to experience strong winds with occasional gusts, PAGASA said.
Sea travel is risky in the seaboards of Batanes, Cagayan, and Ilocos Norte due to rough seas, PAGASA added.
At 4 a.m., Ofel was seen west of Iba, Zambales, carrying maximum sustained winds of 45 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 55 kph.
The tropical depression is heading towards the central portion of Vietnam where it is expected to make landfall and then weaken into a low-pressure area on Saturday.
The rest of the country will have generally fair weather, with chances of isolated rains.
