Malacañang defended the timing of its decisions to halt government work and suspend classes during severe monsoon rains, stating Tuesday that officials must rely on real-time weather forecasts before making announcements.

The explanation came after students and government workers on Monday faced heavy downpours and deep floodwaters due to the afternoon timing of official suspension announcements.

To recall, the Office of the President suspended classes at all levels and halted government work in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces on Monday afternoon following recommendations from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and heavy rainfall warnings from the state weather bureau.

A similar suspension was issued for Tuesday, as monsoonal rains persisted.

When asked whether national and local officials failed to issue timely advance notices, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said the Palace must wait for data from monitoring agencies before taking action.

“As far as we know, they also just receive notices on how heavy or when the heavy rain will fall,” Castro said.

“Even at the Office of Civil Defense and here at the Office of the President, we first request information regarding that before issuing an announcement,” she added.

Castro disclosed that officials rely on continuous monitoring of weather conditions before deciding to halt operations.

“Monitoring is still ongoing, and we will still count on seeing signs of how much the heavy rainfall will intensify,” she said.

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration Deputy administrator for Operations and Services Roy Badilla said monsoon rains will continue across the country, enhanced by two low-pressure areas inside the Philippine Area of Responsibility.

Badilla added that the southwest monsoon is expected to bring occasional heavy rains throughout August.