Severe Tropical Storm Ofel (Usagi) is projected to 'steadily intensify,' while Tropical Storm Nika (Toraji) is no longer affecting the country as it leaves the Philippine Area of Responsibility

WHILE Severe Tropical Storm Nika nears exit from the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR), Tropical Storm Ofel intensifies slightly as it moves northwestward

The tropical storm east of Eastern Visayas has entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Tuesday and will be assigned the domestic name Ofel, according to PAGASA.

Tropical cyclone Ofel (international name: Usagi) intensified into a severe tropical storm on Tuesday afternoon and is forecast to steadily intensify within three days, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said.

The center of TS "Ofel" was estimated based on all available data at 950 km east of southeastern Luzon (13.8°N, 133.0°E).

Ofel has intensified into a severe tropical storm on Tuesday afternoon as it traverses over the Philippine Sea, PAGASA said. According to the state weather bureau’s 5 p.m. bulletin, the center of the storm was spotted 780 kilometers east of Virac,

Tropical Storm Ofel (Usagi) is yet another tropical cyclone heading for Luzon, where it may wreak havoc. It arrives even before the exit of Severe Tropical Storm Nika (Toraji).

This handout photo courtesy of Lie Anne Elacion Fabrigas taken and received on Monday shows a woman outside her damaged home in Dilasag, Aurora province after Typhoon Nika (Toraji) hit the nation's northeast coast.