‘Angat may hit lowest level in July’
Credit to Author: DIVINA NOVA JOY DELA CRUZ| Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2019 16:15:50 +0000
THE water level at Angat Dam may hit an all time low if there will be no significant rainfall in the next two weeks, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
Pagasa said the water level at Angat had further declined on Friday to 159.69 meters, a 0.24-meter drop from the previous day due to the “monsoon break.”
“Starting ng July 6, hindi na tayo nagkaroon ng pag-ulan doon sa area kaya po yung dam natin ay bumababa siya (Starting July 6, we didn’t have [significant] rains over the area that’s why it has been dropping),” Pagasa hydrologist Adelaida Duran said.
“Ngayon, yung forecast statement po for the next few weeks ay hindi masyadong maulan kaya ‘yung trend niya talaga ay pababa (Not much rain is expected in the forecast statement for the next few weeks so that trend is declining),” Duran added.
She further said that if the trend continues, Angat could still hit its lowest level ever.
“Kung wala po talaga tayong mararanasan na pag-ulan by the end of the month so ‘yung baba po niya na 0.30 [meters], 10 days lang po siya, ilan na yung pagbaba niya, so maaari po siyang abutin (It could hit the record-low level in 10 days if there will be no rains by the end of the month as the average daily drop is at 0.30 meters),” Duran said.
She said the climatological rainfall forecast for July is below normal, while near normal to normal rainfall is still expected in August and October.
Pagasa is currently monitoring a low pressure area outside the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR), which could possibly develop into a tropical depression and will be named “Falcon.” It was last spotted at 2,025 east of Davao City as of 8 a.m. on Friday and is expected to enter the PAR on Sunday or Monday but is unlikely to make landfall.
Duran, however, said that even if it might develop into a tropical depression, there was no guarantee it would raise Angat’s water level.
“Ang expectation natin, ‘pag may bagyo, tataas na yung level ng ating mga dam, so hindi po ganon. Kung dumaan po ‘yung bagyo o ‘yung rainbands niya doon sa area at naka-receive ng rainfall ‘yung watershed na ‘yun, meron pong posibilidad na tumaas yung level. (Our expectation is that the water level would increase if there is a tropical cyclone, but it is not always the case. If the tropical cyclone or its rainbands pass by the area and the watershed receives rainfall, there is a possibility that it would increase),” Duran explained.
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