The state weather bureau said on Wednesday that three tropical depressions are being monitored inside and outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR), even as the southwest monsoon continues to bring intense rains over Luzon.

Tropical Depression Neneng, the only storm inside PAR, was located 675 kilometers east of Itbayat, Batanes, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said in its 5:00 a.m. press briefing. It packs maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour (kph) and gustiness of up to 70 kph.

PAGASA said Neneng is not expected to cause any direct effects in the country, as it is projected to move toward and make landfall in Taiwan by Friday.

A second tropical depression, which also developed outside PAR, was located 670 kilometers east of Calayan, Cagayan. It is likewise not expected to have any direct effects on the country as it moves toward China.

The third tropical depression, located 3,090 kilometers east of northeastern Mindanao, is likely to enhance the southwest monsoon by next week and bring rains to large parts of the country, PAGASA said.

"For our countrymen, always check the updates being released by PAGASA, especially regarding the development of these three tropical depressions," PAGASA's Chenel Dominguez said in a press briefing delivered in Filipino.

Meanwhile, the southwest monsoon will continue to bring heavy to intense rains across numerous areas in Luzon and Visayas, with heavy rainfall warnings in effect.

According to PAGASA's 5:00 a.m. weather advisory, intense rainfall — 100 to 200 millimeters (mm) — is expected over Zambales, Bataan, and Occidental Mindoro. The bureau warned of possible flooding in urbanized, low-lying, and near-river areas under these rainfall conditions.

Metro Manila, La Union, Benguet, Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, Abra, Tarlac, Pampanga, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Cavite, Batangas, Laguna, Rizal, and Oriental Mindoro will experience heavy rains, or rainfall of 50 to 100 mm. Under these conditions, localized flooding is likely, especially in urbanized, low-lying, and near-river areas.

PAGASA said the rest of Luzon, Antique, and Aklan will be affected by thunderstorms also caused by the southwest monsoon, posing a risk of flooding and landslides. The advisory underscores how several weather systems can affect the country at the same time, with conditions in one part of the Philippines shaped not only by a storm's track but also by how it interacts with the monsoon over land and sea. — Edg Adrian A. Eva