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Manila Bulletin

Feature

Be ready for 'strong' El Niño

Feature

Be ready for 'strong' El Niño

Department of Science and Technology (DOST) stated that the current state of the El Niño phenomenon in the country is 'comparable' to the severity of the 1997 to 1998 El Niño event

By Lizst Torres Abello and Rhowen Del Rosario

In November 2023, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) confirmed a “strong” El Niño in the Philippines, which persisted from December up until today with warnings of drought and dry conditions in several areas in the country.

In the second week of December, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) stated that the current state of the El Niño phenomenon in the country is “comparable” to the severity of the 1997 to 1998 El Niño event.

WE (17).jpg — Illustration by Roni Santiago

However, even before the peak of El Niño which was forecast in February 2024, two provinces – Nueva Ecija, the country’s “Rice Granary” and Cavite – were already experiencing drought according to PAGASA.

PAGASA explained that when drought occurs, there will be five consecutive months of “below-normal” rainfall or three consecutive months of “way below normal” rainfall occurrences.

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