Jimmy Gomoga

The Papua New Guinea National Weather Service, in collaboration with the Conservation and Environment Protection Authority, is embarking on this exercise.

With funding support from UNDP’s Adaption Funds, the National Weather Service has already installed instruments at the Bumbu River in Lae City and upgraded several other weather monitoring gadgets at Nadzab Airport, Morobe Province.

Assistant director for Forecasting and Warning Centre at the National Weather Service, Jimmy Gomoga, says they now want to do away with all the manual instruments.

Strong winds will also affect Finschhafen and Siassi islands in Morobe Province, West New Britain, Manus and Bougainville.

The PNG National Weather Service (PNG NWS) issued the warning this morning, urging people to take extra precaution when going out to sea.

PNG NWS reports that strong southeast winds of 25/34 knots are expected to continue for the next 24 hours, causing rough seas and high wind waves.

Assistant director of the National Weather Service (NWS) Jimmy Gomoga told Loop PNG that "the peak period of El Nino has just started."

He said the peak period of the dry season starts this month and goes until the middle of December.

Gomoga, who heads the NWS Forecasting and Warning Centre, said the country’s weather will return to its normal cycle in June next year.

El Nino is the effect of change in sea temperature and wind conditions, causing limited rainfall.