THE weather is expected to improve with only light to moderate rain expected until Friday, the weather bureau said Monday.
“No tropical cyclone is expected in the next few days, but light to moderate rain will be experienced in the morning until Friday,” said Esperanza Cayanan, director of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.
“We will leave the cancellation of classes for the local government units to decide.”
Cayanan made her statement even as Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada on Monday ordered city officials to stay alert as a result of the continuing monsoon rains.
Estrada has placed the city’s rescue and relief units on red alert since last week to respond to any emergency such as flash floods.
Classes in all levels in Manila remained suspended on Monday.
“We should not let our guard down,” Estrada said.
The monsoon-driven rain that inundated parts of Luzon and the Visayas in the past few days has left at least six people dead and thousands evacuated to higher ground.
Cayanan said the western section of Luzon will continue to experience moderate to heavy rain at night. Light to moderate rain is expected in Southern Luzon particularly in the Bicol region.
Mina Marasigan, spokeswoman of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, said the monsoon rains killed at least six people but one of those was still under “confirmatory report status.”
She said six people were injured.
“We cannot confirm yet the 6th fatality because we’ve no official report coming in as of the moment,” Marasigan said.
“But we have received a report that one of the seven trapped people was rescued alive, so the rescue operation continues for the other five.”
Marasigan said the victims were trapped on Saturday inside a mining tunnel reportedly owned by a Chinese national in Quezon province. Reports said all of them were from Baguio City.
Disaster officials said 19,406 families or 80,467 people were affected by floods. Of those, 11,087 families or 50,592 people remained in 104 evacuation centers in Bataan, Zambales, Bulacan and Rodriguez, San Mateo and Cainta in Rizal province.
