National authorities and aid organizations readied for a potential disaster as the approaching storm rekindled memories of the devastation wrought in 1998 by Mitch, a massive storm and one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes in history.

"This system by far does not have the dimensions Hurricane Mitch had, but it still has a lot of power and energy that could cause extremely serious material damages and human loss," Honduran President Manuel Zelaya said at a news conference.

More than 12,000 people in threatened areas of Honduras and Nicaragua were ordered to find shelter, as the storm approached with maximum sustained winds of 215 kilometers (135 miles) per hour and higher gusts.

Many of those told to seek safer ground were Miskito Indians who live in fragile coastal homes along the border area where Hurricane Felix was expected to slam ashore Tuesday morning.

Several hundred tourists were also evacuated aboard boats and planes from the Honduran islands of Roatan and Guanaja, which are popular with scuba divers.

"The option is for people to find a place where they may be protected, there is no longer any other option: you have to protect your lives and those of your families," said Obed Escalon, a forecaster with the Honduran weather service.

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said he was cutting short a visit to Panama to lead emergency efforts, while UN and other aid officials said they stood ready to assist.

"This hurricane has the potential to cause major devastation to Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala," said Allen Clinton, a spokesman for the CARE humanitarian assistance group.

Carlos Scaramella, the World Food Program representative in San Salvador, said the UN agency had enough food stocks to feed 100,000 people for the first five days of an emergency.

Forecasters expected that after hitting land, the hurricane would swirl fairly close to the Honduran coast, emerge in the Bay of Honduras, make landfall in Belize on Wednesday morning and continue inland to Guatemala.

This could spell disaster for the central American region where Hurricane Mitch left more than 9,000 people dead and as many missing in 1998.

Many of the areas threatened by the storm's fury are highly vulnerable to floods and mudslides.

In Belize, authorities declared a state of emergency over the entire country and called for volunteers to help "protect life and property."

At midnight GMT Tuesday, the center of Felix was located 325 kilometers (205 miles) east of Cabo Gracias a Dios, a sparsely populated area on the Nicaraguan-Honduran border.

The storm dropped to category four, one notch below the topmost intensity on Monday, but forecasters said it remained extremely dangerous and could regain some strength before it slams ashore.

Felix had strengthened from category two to five in a record 15 hours on Sunday.

Over the weekend, the hurricane damaged homes and downed power lines in Grenada, and lashed Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao with heavy winds, though there were no immediate reports of casualties.

Meanwhile, Mexico braced for a hit on its Pacific coast as Tropical Storm Henriette looked set to strengthen into a hurricane as it barreled toward the Baja California peninsula, which is dotted with tourist resorts.

The storm had already been blamed for seven deaths as rains that drenched the Mexican shoreline caused several mudslides.

Last month, Mexico was battered by Dean, this year's first Atlantic hurricane, which had also reached intensity five during its deadly rampage.

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