MANILA - Tropical storm Ramil (international codename Lupit) has intensified into a typhoon and is now in the Philippine area of responsibility, state weather forecasters said Friday.

As of 10 p.m, the storm was sighted 880 kilometers east of Virac, Catanduanes and is moving in the general direction of Northern and Central Luzon, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

Packing 120 kph winds near the center and gusts of up to 150 kph, the weather disturbance is not expected to affect any part of the country within the next 36 hours.

PAGASA said Luzon will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms while the rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said President Arroyo has ordered the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) to pre-position the equipment needed for rescue operations as well as relief goods to the areas that the storm is expected to hit.

He said he expects dam operators to have learned the lessons left by Typhoons Ondoy (Ketsana) and Pepeng (Parma) by releasing water even before the new storm hits. Local officials in Pangasinan earlier accused dam operators in Northern Luzon of aggravating floods during the height of Pepeng's onslaught.

As of 10 p.m., seven out of 10 major dams in Luzon are still releasing water in anticipation of the new storm. These are the Angat and Ipo Dams in Bulacan, Ambuklao and Binga Dams in Benguet, San Roque Dam in Pangasinan, Pantabangan Dam in Nueva Ecija and Magat Dam in Isabela.

The La Mesa Dam in Quezon City and Caliraya Dam in Laguna remain closed.

Remonde said Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro has started an investigation to identify the people responsible for the massive flooding in northern provinces following the onslaught of tropical storm Pepeng (international codename Parma).

“Secretary Teodoro intimated to me that he is also really going after the heads of those people who will be found responsible for their negligence of duty in the management of these areas,” he told reporters in a briefing in Malacañang.

Remonde made the statement when asked to comment about the probe of the Congressional oversight committee on climate change headed by Senator Loren Legarda.

He said Malacañang welcomes the “instructive” legislative investigation, which, on Friday, mainly focused on the protocol for the releasing of water from dams, particularly the stretch of dams in the northern part of Luzon.

Remonde, meanwhile, did not specify the scope of the investigation being conducted by Teodoro, who is concurrent chairman of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC).

The oversight committee’s investigation was conducted after local officials in Pangasinan province blamed the operators of San Roque dam for the more than 10-feet floods that swamped 38 towns of the province.

At least 20 people have been confirmed killed by floods in the province.

The NDCC has counted a total of 419 deaths due to landslides and flashfloods caused by Pepeng’s heavy rains.

Provincial government officials said billions worth of crops were also swept away by the floods.