ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Opong' may intensify into severe tropical storm before Bicol landfall — PAGASA

'Opong' may intensify into severe tropical storm before Bicol landfall — PAGASA

Published Sep 24, 2025 07:47 am  |  Updated Sep 24, 2025 02:19 pm
PAGASA
PAGASA
Tropical cyclone Opong (international name: Bualoi) intensified into a tropical storm on Wednesday, Sept. 24, and may further strengthen into a severe tropical storm before making landfall by Friday, Sept. 26, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.
As of 4 a.m., the center of Opong was estimated at 855 kilometers east of northeastern Mindanao, with maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph.
It was moving west-southwestward at 20 kph.
PAGASA weather specialist Loriedin de la Cruz-Galicia said the storm was not yet directly affecting the country, but its wide circulation would begin to impact many areas toward the weekend.
She noted that parts of Visayas, almost the entire Southern Luzon, and portions of Central Luzon may experience rains from Friday until Saturday, Sept. 26 to 27.
Landfall
On its forecast track, Opong may move west-northwestward and make landfall over Bicol region by Friday afternoon before crossing Southern Luzon until Saturday morning.
It may exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility by late Saturday or Sunday morning, Sept. 28.
De la Cruz-Galicia said Opong may reach severe tropical storm category before making landfall.
She also did not rule out further intensification since the cyclone remains over the sea.
Heavy rains, possible flooding
PAGASA warned that Opong may begin to bring moderate to heavy rains (50 to 100 millimeters) over Eastern Samar and Northern Samar by Thursday, Sept. 25.
By Friday, widespread rains are expected, with intense to torrential rains (>200 mm) likely over Sorsogon and Northern Samar and heavy to intense rains (100 to 200 mm) over Quezon, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Albay, Masbate, Eastern Samar, and Samar.
Moderate to heavy rains may also affect Metro Manila, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Occidental and Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Aklan, Capiz, and Biliran.
De la Cruz-Galicia advised the public to take the necessary precautions to safeguard lives and property ahead of Opong’s expected landfall.
Wind signals, coastal hazards
PAGASA said Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 1 may be hoisted over Northeastern Mindanao, Eastern Visayas, and Bicol region within Wednesday but the highest possible wind signal during Opong’s passage is Signal No. 3.
It also said moderate to rough seas are expected over the coastal waters of Southern Luzon, Eastern Visayas, and Northeastern Mindanao beginning Thursday.
Gale warnings may be raised over Bicol and Eastern Visayas in anticipation of rough to very rough sea conditions, while storm surges are possible in low-lying coastal areas of Southern Luzon and Eastern Visayas.

Related Tags

TROPICAL STORM OPONG BUALOI PAGASA LANDFALL
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.