Typhoon Dolphin, the most powerful tropical cyclone to hit China this year, made landfall in eastern Zhejiang province on Sunday, bringing torrential rain and powerful winds as more than one million people were evacuated.
The storm reached land near Yuhuan at around 5:30 p.m. local time, with maximum sustained winds of 151 km/h near its centre, according to Chinese meteorological authorities.
Dolphin had earlier swept through Japan’s southern Okinawa prefecture, where six people were injured and more than 50,000 buildings lost power.
Authorities across eastern China moved residents from high-risk areas, recalled vessels to port and stepped up inspections of reservoirs, mountain streams and areas vulnerable to landslides.
Zhejiang’s Wenzhou city relocated more than 900,000 residents and opened over 1,000 emergency shelters, while Shanghai evacuated at least 30,300 people.
In Fujian province, nearly 99,000 people were moved from high-risk areas, while dozens of coastal ferry routes were suspended and offshore construction projects halted.
Transport was also heavily disrupted. Around 1,500 flights were cancelled in Shanghai, while the city’s Yangshan port cleared ships from its berths and moved more than 500 small and medium-sized vessels to shelter.
Heavy rain is expected to continue through 10 August across Zhejiang, Shanghai and several neighbouring provinces.
Parts of central and eastern Zhejiang could receive between 250 and 500 millimetres of rain, raising concerns about severe flooding, overflowing rivers and landslides.
China’s water resources ministry warned that the Qiantang, Yong, Jiao and Shuiyang rivers could experience major flooding, while smaller waterways in the hardest-hit areas could rise above warning levels.
Authorities have also warned of a high risk of geological disasters in parts of Zhejiang, with residents in areas under the highest mountain-torrent warnings urged to follow evacuation orders.
After making landfall, Dolphin is forecast to move westwards before slowing over central and southwestern China and gradually weakening.
Forecasters warned that its slower movement inland could prolong rainfall and increase the risk of flooding and landslides, particularly in mountainous regions.
Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu have activated Level III emergency responses, while Fujian has also raised its typhoon emergency response to the same level as authorities continue to monitor the storm’s path.
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