Typhoon Jenny maintains strength over Philippine Sea; Signal 2 up over Batanes

Typhoon Jenny (international name: Koinu) maintained its strength over the Philippine Sea on Tuesday as Batanes remains under Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 2, PAGASA reported.

As of 4 a.m., the center of the eye of Typhoon Jenny was estimated to be located at 350 kilometers east of Basco, Batanes packing maximum sustained winds of 165 kilometers per hour near the center, gustiness of up to 205 km/h, and central pressure of 945 hPa.

Jenny is moving west northwestward at a speed of 15 km/h with strong to typhoon-force winds extending outwards up to 560 km from the center.

TCWS No. 1 was hoisted over the following areas:

• Cagayan including Babuyan Islands;
• the northern and eastern portions of Isabela (Maconacon, Divilacan, Palanan, Santa Maria, San Pablo, Tumauini, Cabagan, Ilagan City, San Mariano, Santo Tomas, Dinapigue, Benito Soliven, Naguilian, Gamu, Quirino, Delfin Albano, Quezon, Mallig);
• Apayao;
• the northeastern portion of Abra (Tineg, Lacub, Malibcong);
• the northern portion of Kalinga (Balbalan, Pinukpuk, Rizal, City of Tabuk); and
• Ilocos Norte.

Heavy rainfall outlook

Forecast accumulated rainfall for Batanes and Babuyan islands is  50-100 mm on Tuesday.

The weather bureau also reported that forecast rainfall are generally higher in elevated or mountainous areas.

Batanes will experience stormy weather due to Typhoon Jenny with flooding or landslides possibly occurring due to moderate to heavy rains. The weather condition also poses minor to moderate threat to lives and properties due to strong winds.

Cagayan including Babuyan Islands, Isabela, Apayao, Kalinga, Abra, and Ilocos Norte will experience rains with gusty winds also due to the typhoon. Flooding or landslides may occur in these areas due to moderate to heavy rains and there may be minimal to minor threat to lives and properties due to strong winds.

Aurora, Quezon, Camarines Norte, the rest of Ilocos Region, the rest of Cordillera Administrative Region, and the rest of Cagayan Valley will have cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms due to the trough of the typhoon. Flash floods or landslides in these areas may occur due to moderate to at times heavy rains.

Metro Manila, Mimaropa, Western Visayas, the rest of Central Luzon, and the rest of Calabarzon will have cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms due to the Southwest Monsoon or Habagat with the possibility of flash floods or landslides occurring due to moderate to at times heavy rains.

The rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms due to the trough of Typhoon Jenny and localized thunderstorms. PAGASA warned that flash floods or landslides may occur during severe thunderstorms.

Severe winds

"The wind signals warn the public of the general wind threat over an area due to the tropical cyclone. Local winds may be slightly stronger/enhanced in coastal and upland/mountainous areas exposed to winds. Winds are less strong in areas sheltered from the prevailing wind direction," said PAGASA.

There may be minor to moderate impacts from gale-force winds in areas under TCWS No. 2 and minimal to minor impacts from strong winds are possible within any of the areas under TCWS No. 1.

The enhancement of the Southwest Monsoon by the typhoon, PAGASA said, will bring gusty conditions for the next three days starting today over Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Metro Manila, CALABARZON, Bicol Region, and most of Mimaropa and Western Visayas.

Hazards affecting coastal waters

"Under the influence of Jenny, a Gale Warning is in effect for the coastal waters along the northern and eastern seaboards of Northern Luzon," said PAGASA.

The wind speed forecast for extreme Northern Luzon is strong moving in the north to northwest direction with rough coastal waters.

The rest of Northern Luzon will experience moderate to strong wind speed moving in the northwest to southwest direction with moderate to rough coastal waters.

The rest of the country will experience light to moderate wind speed moving southwestward with slight to moderate coastal waters.

Track and intensity outlook

Typhoon Jenny is forecast to move northwestward or west northwestward until Wednesday morning or afternoon before turning generally westward.

Jenny is forecast to make landfall over the southern portion of Taiwan between late evening on Wednesday or Thursday morning then exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) between Thursday morning and afternoon.

Cagayan, other provinces' preparations

The province of Cagayan has implemented a no-sail policy, fishing ban, and liquor ban starting Monday, according to a report on Unang Balita on Tuesday.

Fishermen secured their motor bancas in the municipality of Calayan, while teachers in the municipality of Baggao moved their books and important documents to ensure they would not get wet.

Residents who experienced flooding due to previous typhoons nervously monitored the level of water at Cagayan River overnight as heavy rains poured.

Food packs have been prepositioned in towns while rescue personnel were already deployed as part of disaster preparations.

Meanwhile, in Dilasag, Aurora, fishermen have not ventured out to sea in recent days due to the strong waves caused by Typhoon Jenny. Swimming has also been banned in the waters.

Heavy rains were also experienced in Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija and Samal in Bataan. — BAP/KG, GMA Integrated News