WORLD
Tropical Depression Zoraida Lurks as Haiyan Relief Continues
Baku, November 12 (AZERTAC). Even as relief efforts ramp up in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan, another tropical disturbance is threatening the Philippines.
A tropical depression, named Zoraida by the Philippine weather agency PAGASA, is approaching the east coast of Mindanao, the largest island in the southern part of the Philippines.
As of 4 a.m. Tuesday local time (3 p.m. EST Monday in the U.S.), Zoraida was centered about 120 miles east of Davao City.
Davao is one of the largest cities in the Philippines, with over 1.4 million people in the city and 2.2 million people in its metropolitan area.
While winds are currently weak with this system and only minor intensification is expected, the rainfall that comes with it will be unwelcome, particularly if it nudges north into the central Philippines where Haiyan (known in the Philippines as Yolanda) dealt its worst blow. Zoraida is moving in a west-northwesterly direction, so the greatest impacts should remain across the southern Philippines.
Stay with The Weather Channel and weather.com as we follow the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
Zoraida is expected to make landfall over the Davao region between 11 am and 1 pm on Tuesday, Jun Galang, a forecaster from the state weather bureau agency Philippines Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) told local dzBB radio.
Local authorities expect Zoraida to inflict damage along its path, but not as massive compared to what Category 5 super typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda did four days ago.
"I was talking to the people of Tacloban," Senior Presidential aide Rene Alemendras told the Associated Press. "They said 'we were ready for the wind. We were not ready for the water.'" Estimates placed 10,000 people perished from super typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda alone.
PAGASA expects tropical depression Zoraida to be 123 km south-southwest of Iloilo City by Wednesday morning, and then on Thursday morning, 517 km west of Coron, Palawan.
"By Thursday afternoon, it is expected to be outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) at 890 km west-northwest of Coron, Palawan," the weather service said.
PAGASA advised the tropical depression will dump moderate to heavy rainfall within its 300-kilometre diameter. Flashfloods and landslides are highly possible.