At 4:00 am Saturday, (2000 GMT Friday), Hanna was located 70 kilometres (43.7 miles) east of the northeastern province of Aurora, moving west at 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) per hour towards the northern half of the main island of Luzon, the government weather station said.

Packing maximum wind speeds of 80 kilometres (50 miles) per hour, Hanna was expected to cross the northern half of Luzon and move west of the island by Sunday morning.

Heavy rain has fallen over much of Luzon including Manila since Friday.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties but civil defence offices have warned the public to beware of flash floods.

Residents on mountainslopes were also warned to beware of mudslides triggered by the rain.

An estimated 1,316 people were left dead or missing after typhoon Durian in November, spawning deadly mudslides around Mayon volcano, southeast of Manila.