El Niño phenomenon has ended — PAGASA

State weather bureau PAGASA on Friday announced the end of the El Niño phenomenon, which wrought havoc on agricultural lands and fishing areas across the country over the past months.

"El Niño in the tropical Pacific Ocean has ended, as both oceanic and atmospheric indicators have returned to El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO)-neutral levels," PAGASA said in its final El Niño advisory dated June 4.

However, PAGASA climate monitoring and prediction section chief Ana Liza Solis told Super Radyo dzBB that there would still be remnants of El Niño effects possibly in western portions of Luzon and the Visayas.

“Makakaranas pa rin po tayo lalong-lalo na itong mga huling araw na medyo maiinit pa rin na temperatura, mataas na maalinsangan,” Solis said.

(We will still experience, especially these last few days, hot temperatures and high humidity.)

“Also, may mga areas pa rin po base doon sa assessment natin ng katapusan ng Mayo, may mga areas pa rin po na under drought condition and dry spell condition,” she added.

(Also, there are still areas, based on our assessment at the end of May, that will face drought conditions and dry spell conditions," she added.

PAGASA declared the start of the El Niño phenomenon on July 4 last year.

The El Niño phenomenon is characterized by the abnormal warming of sea surface temperature in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean leading to below normal rainfall.

It affected 4,650,600 people or 1,221,538 families in different regions of the country, according to the latest report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

Damage to agriculture worth P9,496,371,364 was reported.

A state of calamity was declared in 432 cities and municipalities as they experienced drought and water supply shortage due to the impact of El Niño.

Assistance worth P1,163,174,210 was provided to the victims, according to the NDRRMC. — VDV/RSJ, GMA Integrated News