Palawan is beginning to feel the first signs of the rainy season as a southwesterly wind flow settles over the province, prompting state weather experts to warn of possible flooding and landslides in the coming days.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) confirmed on Thursday, May 29, that this wind pattern—considered the early phase of the southwest monsoon or habagat—has started affecting the western parts of Luzon, including Palawan.
“The nature of the southwesterly wind flow brings light to moderate rains, with occasional heavy showers that may cause flooding and landslides,” said PAGASA weather specialist Benison Estareja, noting that the shift in weather is part of the natural transition toward the country’s wet season.
In Palawan, cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms were already observed Thursday. Local disaster response units have been placed on alert as rural communities in low-lying and mountainous areas remain vulnerable to rainfall-induced hazards.
The rains are expected to persist over the weekend, with the southwesterly wind flow continuing to affect Mimaropa—the region that includes Palawan—until Monday, June 2, according to Estareja.
The sudden increase in rainfall has raised the possibility of an early declaration of the start of the rainy season.
“We can expect the official declaration of the onset of the southwest monsoon or rainy season in the first few days of June,” Estareja said.
With localized thunderstorms also possible in other parts of the province, PAGASA advised Palawan residents to remain cautious, particularly those in remote barangays where landslides and flash floods can be triggered by short but intense bursts of rain.
As of now, the easterlies, or warm winds from the Pacific, are no longer affecting the region directly, which further reinforces the dominance of moisture-rich southwesterly winds.
PAGASA said it continues to monitor the situation and will issue advisories and heavy rainfall warnings when necessary.
For PAGASA to formally declare the start of the rainy season, the southwest monsoon must become the dominant wind system in western Luzon, and at least 25 mm of rainfall must be recorded for five consecutive days in at least seven weather monitoring stations.
Though Palawan lies farther from the country’s traditional habagat monitoring points, it is often among the first provinces to feel the effects of southwest wind patterns due to its geographic position along the West Philippine Sea.