THE Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) has been sounding the alarm bell regarding the occurrence of the El Niño phenomenon that is expected to impact the country later this year or early next year.

El Niño is a weather phenomenon that is officially described as an 'irregularly recurring flow of unusually warm surface waters from the Pacific Ocean toward and along the western coast of South America that prevents upwelling of nutrient-rich cold deep water and that disrupts typical regional and global weather patterns.'