Reverse course for 'Quinta'

Tropical depression “Quinta” (international name Maysak) returned to the Philippines yesterday and is expected to bring more rains and strong winds over some parts of the country in the next 24 hours, the government weather bureau said.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) also said a low pressure area was spotted 170 kilometers east-southeast of Aparri, Cagayan.

Pagasa weather forecaster Nonoy About, however, said the LPA is not expected to develop into a tropical cyclone due to the cold front affecting northern Luzon.

About said aside from rains, Quinta would also bring moderate to strong winds in the western part of Northern Luzon.

But Quinta is unlikely to make landfall over the country, he said.

About said as of 2 p.m. yesterday, Quinta was located some 380 kms west of Subic, Zambales with maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour near the center.

He said Quinta is predicted to move southward at seven kilometers per hour.

About said the prevailing cold front has caused Quinta to move slowly over the South China Sea.

“The cold front would also prevent the LPA from developing into a storm as the LPA needs warm air to intensify,” he said.

About said cloudy skies and scattered rainshowers would prevail over Luzon in the next 24 hours.

Visayas would have mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers while the rest of the country would experience partly cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers.

He said moderate to strong northeasterly winds would prevail over Northern Luzon and the coastal waters in these areas would be moderate to rough.

Elsewhere, sea conditions would be slight to moderate except during thunderstorms, he said.