MANILA, Philippines (ANN/PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER) – A typhoon (international name: Mawar) approaching the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) intensified into a super typhoon again on Thursday morning, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.
“Tropical cyclone Mawar continues to strengthen. If yesterday it was a typhoon, today it has strengthened again into a super typhoon,” PAGASA weather specialist Benison Estareja said in a report.
As of 3am, Mawar’s location was 2,150 kilometers east of Southern Luzon, according to the state weather service, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometres per hour (kph) with a gustiness of 230 kph.
Mawar also slightly accelerated at 15 kph and currently has a diameter of 780 kilometers, according to Estareja.
“From Wednesday to Friday, it will move generally west-northwest and will remain a super typhoon, it will still remain strong,” he noted.
“It may enter PAR Friday night into Saturday morning,” he added.
Once it enters the PAR, the typhoon will be given the local name “Betty.”
It would be the second storm to hit the country this year and the first this month.
The name Betty was also used for a typhoon that hit the Philippines in 2015 and 2019. But PAGASA may reuse one of four sets of typhoon names on a four-year rotation.
