Am just glad our little bungalow has been spared from nature’s fury. This is one of those times when we’re thankful to have a garage for the old car, and a cozy roof over our heads. I dread it when the post-storm accounting comes and out comes reports of our brethren drowning or are rendered homeless because they live near dikes, riverbanks, esteros, coastal areas etc. Hope not

It’s the monsoon season in the Philippines, and am just thankful Ondoy chose to lash out its strength on a Saturday, and some office workers like us are spared the pain of commuting to and from work, most likely getting stranded in the process. The last worse typhoon etched in my family’s memory was Milenyo which scared us to death with the fury of its winds, and the blackouts after. We had to stay in a hotel for the next few days.

In the meantime, here’s the latest weather forecast:

“Ondoy” packed maximum winds of 85 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 100 kph, and was moving west-northwest at 19 kph.

It was expected to be 230 km west-northwest of Iba, Zambales by Sunday morning as it continues to move into the South China Sea. – via gmanews.tv

Central Luzon and the provinces of Pangasinan, La Union, Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Rizal, Quezon and Camarines Norte will experience stormy weather while the rest of Luzon will have rains and gusty winds with moderate to rough seas. Visayas will have Monsoon Rains while Mindanao will be cloudy with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms.

Moderate to strong winds blowing from the Southwest will prevail over Visayas and Mindanao and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. – PAGASA weather forecast