Typhoon Dolphin Slams Eastern China and Japan, Triggering Mass Evacuations

Typhoon Dolphin battered East Asia and parts of Japan with maximum sustained winds reaching 144 kph (89 mph) near Okinawa before making landfall along China’s eastern coast, triggering mass evacuations, widespread transit cancellations, and severe weather alerts across multiple provinces.

Landfall and Evacuations in Eastern China

Typhoon Dolphin slammed into China’s eastern coast on Sunday night, forcing authorities to evacuate over one million residents across the region, according to BBC reports cited by OpenJaw. In Taizhou, Zhejiang province, where the storm made landfall with winds topping 151 km/h, approximately 390,000 people were relocated as powerful surf battered the coastline. China Central Television (CCTV) reported that the major port city of Wenzhou alone relocated more than 900,000 people and opened over 1,500 emergency shelters. Meanwhile, Xinhua news agency noted that authorities evacuated more than 150,000 residents in Fujian province and over 200,000 people in Shanghai.

Travel Disruption and Aviation Impacts

The typhoon heavily disrupted regional transportation networks, resulting in more than 2,000 flight cancellations and delays across China, Japan, and Taiwan. FlightAware data showed that the storm triggered 366 cancellations and 1,784 delays early Monday morning. Shanghai’s Hongqiao and Pudong airports canceled roughly 60% of their Sunday schedules and operated at nearly 40% reduced capacity on Monday. China Eastern Airlines announced Monday that it was working to resume services to Shanghai, Zhejiang, and surrounding destinations in an orderly manner. In Japan, where the storm sideswiped southern islands before shifting course, flight-tracking data recorded 199 cancellations and 510 delays over Sunday and Monday. Cross-strait flights were likewise canceled as heavy rain swept through Taipei, Taiwan.

Photo: channelnewsasia.com

Regional Weather Warnings and Prior Impacts

Northern China faced compounding extreme weather threats as five districts in Beijing issued red alerts for heavy rain on Monday, carrying explicit warnings of potential floods and landslides. Forecasters predicted between 200 and 400 millimeters of rain for Fujian province in the days following landfall. Before impacting China and brushing Japan, the outer bands of Typhoon Dolphin intensified monsoon rains in the Philippines, generating flooding across northern Luzon and Manila that displaced more than 12,000 people. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the brunt of the typhoon struck just north of Okinawa’s main island on Friday afternoon before tracking toward the mainland.

Airlines and transportation authorities are continuing to monitor regional weather conditions as carriers work to clear backlogs and restore normal schedules across affected East Asian transit hubs.