MANILA. Close to 100,000 people in the northeastern part of the country are set for evacuation, upon orders of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, yesterday, the eve of the landfall of typhoon "Mina" (international codename: Mitag).

The brewing super typhoon changed direction at dawn yesterday, and was forecast to make landfall in the provinces of Aurora and Isabela on Sunday evening, instead of in the Bicol region as earlier predicted.

Isabela Governor Grace Padaca said at least 54,000 people in the coastal towns of Dinapigue and Palanan were being evacuated.

Quoting Aurora Governor Bellaflor Angara-Castillo, Office of Civil Defense Administrator Glen Rabonza said 40,000 people would be evacuated there.

Arroyo talked to Padaca, Angara-Castillo, and other governors in Northern Luzon via speakerphone, when she presided over a meeting of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) in Camp Aguinaldo.

"The evacuation is taking place as of the moment…We are looking at around tens of thousands," NDCC spokesman Anthony Golez told a news conference.

"The President has instructed the NDCC to take precautionary and preventive measures. Provincial governors have been alerted and all contingency plans are in place," Golez said.

"We have very good preparations. The preparedness of the NDCC is not only several days before the typhoon, it is a year-long program," Rabonza said.

While the storm will not make landfall in Bicol, the estimated 250,000 evacuees there would not be allowed to return to their homes until the weather conditions improve, Golez said.

He said the region would still be battered by heavy rains that could trigger landslides and flashfloods.

"The worst is not yet over yet. Let's wait for the typhoon to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility," Golez said.

The new round of evacuations, Golez said, would start in coastal areas, which are at risk from storm surge; the riverbanks, which are threatened by floods; and mountain slopes, which could be covered by landslides.

"Mina," which packs maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers per hour near the center, and gusts of up to 210 kilometers per hour, was spotted 190 kilometers northeast of Virac in Catanduanes province at 10 a.m. Saturday, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

PAG-ASA Director Prisco Nilo told the same news conference that the storm was likely to strengthen further before it makes landfall in the area of Aurora and Isabela tonight.

After making landfall, Nilo said "Mina" would track the provinces of Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Ifugao, Mountain Province, Benguet, and Ilocos Sur. He said the storm would exit Ilocos Sur by noon tomorrow.

The storm was moving northwest at a "very slow" 11 kilometers per hour, Nilo said. An earlier PAG-ASA weather bulletin said the storm was "almost stationary."

The change in "Mina's" track was caused by the weakening of a high pressure area north of the storm near Hong Kong, and the strengthening of another high pressure area south of the storm, over the Pacific Ocean, and tropical storm "Lando" (international codename: Hagibis), which exited the central Philippines earlier this week, Nilo said.

The high pressure area off Hong Kong, before it weakened, was preventing "Mina" from moving northwest, Nilo said, adding the high pressure area over the Pacific Ocean was pushing the storm upwards.

"It modified the environmental systems surrounding the typhoon, changing its movement," Nilo said.

The Magat Dam in Isabela province has started releasing water, while the Angat Dam in Bulacan province continued to release water, to prevent an overflow when the rains come, Nilo said.

Meanwhile, the Binga dam and Ambuklao dams in Benguet province have released water to the San Roque Dam in Pangasinan province to prevent an overflow, he said.