The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) is monitoring a severe tropical storm with an international name "Mindulle" that may enter the country's area of responsibility by Sunday or Monday, Sept. 26 or Sept. 27.
Once inside the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR), the severe tropical storm will be named "Lannie."
As of 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 24, Mindulle's location was estimated at 1,905 kilometers (km) east of Southern Luzon.
It has maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 115 kph while moving west-northwestward at 20 kph.
"Highly favorable conditions will allow the tropical cyclone to rapidly intensify within the forecast period. It may be upgraded to typhoon category within 24 hours and may reach a peak intensity of around 205 kph by Monday," PAGASA said.
However, PAGASA pointed out that Mindulle is less likely to make landfall and remain far from the Philippine archipelago.
The weather disturbance is also not expected to directly affect the country's weather condition throughout the forecast period.
It may, however, trigger moderate to rough seas with up to 2.8-meter-high waves in the northern and eastern seaboards of Luzon as early as Monday.
As of Friday, PAGASA said the easterlies or the warm and humid winds coming from the Pacific Ocean remain the dominant weather system in the country.
Metro Manila and the rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers in the next 24 hours.
However, PAGASA continued to advise the public to take precautions against possible flash floods or landslides especially during the occurrence of severe thunderstorms that are often associated with short-lived heavy rains.