How to interprete this ある もの?

Question

The sentence in question: 中国の気象当局は、南部の雨は弱まりつつあるものの水が引くまでには時間がかかるとしています。

For full context: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20180902/k10011604941000.html?utm_int=news-new_contents_latest_001

My attempt at translation: "Chinas weather officials have judged about the rain in the southern regions that, while it abates it will take time until the water which is there draws back."

The part 弱まり つつ ある もの is the hardest for me. I'm not sure whether I parsed つつ correctly, since it confuses me that it stands right in the middle of the phrase while I interpreted it as a temporal conjunction. Also, the way I interpreted あるものの水 was more out of despair because I didn't really know how else to make sense of it xD

Answer 1

南部の雨は弱まりつつあるものの...

You're splitting it up in the wrong places.

つつある attaches to the masu-stem of a verb to indicate that the action is continuing.

ものの is a particle that means 'although'.

Using this we get:

Although the rain in the south is weakening....

Answer 2

ものの is one single expression, and means "although", "but".

ものの:
［接助］《形式名詞「もの」＋格助詞「の」から》
活用語の連体形に付く。逆接の確定条件を表す。…けれども。…とはいえ。

examples:
習いはしたものの、すっかり忘れてしまった。
新機軸を打ち出したものの、採用はされなかった。
私の知ったことではない．とはいうもののやはり悲しいよ。
It's none of my business. But I am grieved nevertheless.

In modern Japanese it is often used in expressions like:
とはいうものの
いいような（よかった）ものの
https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/jn/219938/meaning/m1u/ものの/
https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/en/ものの/#je-75627