Residents of Northern Luzon have four more days to prepare for Typhoon "Ramil," which is expected to directly hit Batanes, Cagayan, Kalinga, and Ilocos Norte on Thursday, the weather bureau said.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration said it expects Ramil to move westward starting Tuesday, influenced by a ridge of high pressure area (HPA) near Hong Kong and Taiwan which intensified Monday.

PAGASA director Nathaniel Cruz said the ridge of HPA will continue to force Ramil westward until Wednesday, which would allow people to buy time and seek higher ground before the typhoon makes landfall on Thursday.

"The eye of the typhoon may not hit land but the typhoon's circulation will affect provinces in the North including Batanes, Cagayan, Kalinga, Apayao, Ifugao, Quirino, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union and Pangasinan," Cruz said.

Last Saturday, Ramil started to slither across the Philippine Sea near Aurora province, moving at a very slow northward pace until it was 1,110 kilometers east of Aparri, Cagayan as of 10 a.m. on Monday.

The typhoon maintained maximum sustained winds of 175 kph near the center and gustiness of 210 kph while moving at 3 to 4 kph as of 10 a.m. Monday.

Cruz said Ramil could start moving southwest on Wednesday, which would expose the Ilocos and Cordillera regions to the eye of the typhoon should the HPA near Hong Kong continue to intensify.

"So let's pray that the HPA will not intensify further so that Typhoon Ramil will remain moving westward while passing above Northern Luzon," he said.

The weather bureau official said Luzon and the Visayas provinces will experience scattered rains and thunderstorms due to the prevailing Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) near Palawan.

He clarified that the initial effects of the typhoon such as storm surges, gusty winds and intense rains will not be felt until Wednesday evening.

Ramil has been expected to be at about 900 kilometers east northeast of Aparri on Tuesday morning, and about 510 kilometers east northeast of the same town in Cagayan by Wednesday morning.

The Philippine Coast Guard has placed 20 of its rescue teams on full alert in anticipation of the typhoon onslaught.

Coast Guard Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said two teams have already been dispatched to Northern Luzon to augment rescue units in the area which was recently devastated by typhoon “Pepeng”. He said eight teams are on standby at the Coast Guard Headquarters in Manila and Taguig.

The Coast Guard vessel BRP EDSA 2 under the command of Commodore Rodolfo Villajuan Monday started to sail towards La Union to facilitate the rescue units and serve as command post for other PCG rescue teams. The PCG Air Group was also placed on standby alert in case air evacuation is required.

Tamayo also requested shipping companies based in Manila for the availability of their rubber boats and life rafts in case of massive flooding. (With a report from John Carlo Cahinhinan)