MANILA, Philippines--Tropical Storm Ramil is slowly moving out of the country after days of erratic behavior that kept hundreds of residents in northern Luzon, particularly Cagayan province, on edge.

It eventually veered northwards and spared Cagayan.

Storm Signal No. 1 remained hoisted Saturday afternoon over the Batanes Islands. But storm alerts elsewhere were lifted after Ramil weakened into a tropical storm Saturday, with maximum winds of 95 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of 120 kph.

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) forecaster Manny Mendoza said: ?If Ramil sustains its current speed, it will be out of the country by Sunday night.?

He said the province of Cagayan was already safe from Ramil.

Located 425 km northeast of Basco, Batanes late Saturday afternoon, Ramil was moving at 15 kilometers per hour to the northeast.

It was being pulled away from the country by a mid-latitude trough near Japan and was projected to be 700 km northeast of Basco, Batanes, by Sunday afternoon or even earlier if it picks up speed, Mendoza said.

The high pressure area near Hong Kong that trapped Ramil near Aparri, Cagayan, since Wednesday has dissipated, allowing Ramil to move up, away from the Philippines.

Mendoza said that while Ramil did not make landfall in Cagayan, it apparently did so in some parts of Batanes.

Meanwhile, Pagasa said it has spotted another low pressure area some 2,000 km away from eastern Visayas.

The low pressure area was still outside the country?s area of responsibility, Mendoza said.