Heavy Rain Warning Covers Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani as Habagat Strengthens Under Super Typhoon Inday

Quick Answer

PAGASA placed Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani under a heavy rainfall warning that runs from Wednesday afternoon into Thursday, with flash floods and landslides the main threats.

Which Mindanao areas are getting rain

The monsoon is bringing scattered rain and thunderstorms to the Zamboanga Peninsula, the Bangsamoro region, Lanao del Norte, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, South Cotabato, Cotabato, and General Santos City. The rest of Mindanao can expect isolated showers.

The wet band stretches into the western Visayas as well, covering Antique, Iloilo, Guimaras, and both Negros provinces under the same monsoon flow.

Forecasters flagged the southwestern part of Mindanao as the wettest zone through midweek. The heaviest totals are expected over Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani before the rain band widens toward the rest of the island.

The rain picked up from Tuesday afternoon and was set to run through Wednesday across the Zamboanga Peninsula, the Bangsamoro provinces, and the SOCCSKSARGEN area, the zone nearest the incoming monsoon surge. Isolated showers were possible elsewhere on the island through the same window.

Why it is raining across Mindanao

The rain is driven by the habagat, the southwest monsoon, which is being intensified over the western section of Mindanao by Super Typhoon Inday. The storm entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Wednesday morning after being known internationally as Bavi.

Inday is the country's ninth tropical cyclone of the year and the second for July. Forecasters say it will not make landfall in the Philippines, but its wide wind field keeps feeding moisture into the monsoon.

The storm is powerful even at a distance. It carries a central pressure of about 930 hPa, and its strong winds reach as far as 900 kilometers from the center. PAGASA has said two to four tropical cyclones may form in or enter the country's monitoring zone this month.

Flood and landslide risk

PAGASA warned that flash floods and landslides may occur where the rain falls heaviest, and urged residents to prepare. The mountainous border areas of the region are especially exposed after days of wet ground.

Local disaster offices advised communities near rivers and slopes to watch for rising water and to move early if conditions worsen through the night.

The warning covers ground already soaked by earlier downpours, which raises the chance that even short, intense bursts of rain send water rushing off the hills. Officials asked residents in low areas to prepare for sudden flooding and to keep emergency contacts within reach.

Rough seas and gusty winds

The enhanced monsoon and Inday's periphery are producing strong gusts, reaching gale strength in exposed coastal and upland areas across most of Mindanao. Seas are hazardous along the eastern and southern seaboards of Davao Oriental, and off Dinagat Islands, the Siargao and Bucas Grande Islands, and Surigao del Sur.

PAGASA advised operators of small vessels to stay in port until the winds and waves ease.

A separate gale warning was in force for the northern and eastern seaboards of Luzon and the eastern seaboard of the Visayas, where sea travel was called risky for vessels of any size. Mariners in those waters were told to stay in port or seek safe harbor until conditions improved.

What to expect next

The rain is forecast to spread further west over the coming days, reaching more of the Visayas and the western sections of Southern Luzon. Inday is expected to be nearest Extreme Northern Luzon around July 10 to 11 before turning away toward the seas off Taiwan and southern Japan.

The storm is forecast to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility by July 11, though the monsoon rains it strengthened may linger over parts of Mindanao afterward.

Inday is expected to hold super typhoon strength until July 9 before easing into a typhoon, then track toward the seas off Taiwan and southern Japan and make landfall over the eastern coast of mainland China around July 12. Its pull on the monsoon should fade as it moves farther away.