Experts at the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) Friday attributed the failure of typhoon “Ramil” to make landfall over North Luzon province for the third time since Wednesday to climate change.

PAGASA Deputy Director Nathaniel Cruz noted that Ramil has become the third severe weather disturbance, which exemplified “unusually erratic and abnormal” behaviors following tropical Storm “Ondoy” on September 26 and typhoon “Pepeng” on October 3.

“This is not normal because a typhoon this strong (like Ramil) should have entered the Philippine area of responsibility by now. It should have been like a tank barreling its way towards the country regardless of what weather systems are near it,” Cruz said in an interview.

“But now, a simple trough has overpowered it... What we are saying is that this could be a manifestation of climate change. And the people needs to understand that Ramil will not be the last typhoon entering the country to have such abnormal and erratic behaviors,” he stressed.

Cruz issued the statement after fickle-minded Ramil has dramatically slowed down its west southwestward movement towards Aparri in Cagayan for the second time as it interacts with two ridges of High Pressure Area (HPA) in Hong Kong and another one in south of Japan since Thursday.

The top weather official added that the the typhoon's abrupt deceleration has postponed the supposed landfall of Ramil to early Sunday morning, instead of earlier expected touchdown first on Wednesday morning, second on Thursday night, and most recently on Friday morning.

In a press conference, Cruz said that Ramil weakened, bearing a maximum sustained winds of 120 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 150 kph while remaining almost stationary at about 110 kilometers east of Aparri, Cagayan as of 11 a.m. on Friday.

He explained that Friay morning, the northward movement of HPA near south of Japan has left the typhoon without any mechanism that would continuously stir and push Ramil northwestward, adding that the other HPA near Hong Kong has been blocking the cyclone from heading southwestward.

Ramil has nowhere to go in the next three days. But we think that the landfall of the typhoon has become immaterial considering that Batanes and Cagayan and other provinces in extreme North Luzon are being battered by strong winds since Thursday,” he noted.

However, Cruz took the development as good news, saying that the weakening of the typhoon could lessen the damages Ramil could make on the region.

Storm Signal No. 3 has been raised over Batanes, Cagayan including Calayan and Babuyan islands, Apayao and Ilocos Norte while Storm Signal No. 2 has been maintained over Abra, Ilocos Sur, Kalinga, Isabela, and Mountain Province.

The weather bureau also hoisted Storm Signal No. 1 over La Union, Benguet, Ifugao, Nueva Ecija, Quirino, and northern part of Aurora while lowering other public warnings in the northern part of Central Luzon.