Typhoon Dolphin made landfall in the heavily populated eastern regions of China on Sunday, according to weather officials. The storm caused over 1,000 flight cancellations, evacuations, and prompted the issuance of a top-level alert. Coastal areas along China’s east have been preparing in recent days, with transportation and work disruptions in some regions along the storm’s projected path.
The storm’s eye crossed the shoreline near Yuhuan City in Zhejiang Province around 5:30 p.m. local time, the China National Meteorological Center reported. Winds at the storm’s center exceeded 150 km/h (94 mph) at the time of landfall, officials confirmed.
Nearly 1,400 flights in and out of Shanghai’s two main airports were canceled on Sunday, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Meanwhile, Hangzhou’s airport in the nearby Zhejiang province canceled about 270 flights. The impact extended as far as Hong Kong, where the weather authority recorded a record temperature of 36.9°C, driven by warm air influenced by the approaching typhoon.
The Hong Kong Observatory warned that the outer bands of Dolphin would bring persistently hot weather until Tuesday, as the storm moves into inland Zhejiang. Prior to reaching China, Dolphin brought heavy rain and strong winds to Japan’s Okinawa, resulting in minor injuries for seven people, including an elderly man who was knocked over by gusts and hit his head. Over 5,200 households lost power in Okinawa.
In Taiwan, over 180 flights were canceled, and many ferry services were suspended as the storm brought heavy rains and strong winds to the northern part of the island. The China Meteorological Center issued a red typhoon alert—its highest warning level—on Sunday morning, forecasting extreme rainfall in central and eastern Zhejiang.
Heavy downpours are also expected to hit Shanghai and parts of Fujian, Anhui, and Jiangsu provinces through Monday afternoon. As Dolphin weakens after landfall, it continues to move northwest across eastern China. In Fujian, approximately 99,000 people were relocated from areas considered at risk before the storm’s arrival. More than 200 ferry routes in Zhejiang and Fujian have been suspended, and offshore construction has also halted, with nearly 474 vessels returned to port.
Train services in affected areas have been temporarily suspended to ensure passenger safety. Experts attribute the increasing frequency and severity of such heat events to human-induced climate change. Dolphin’s arrival follows closely behind Typhoon Noul, which struck Guangdong province two weeks earlier and was considered the strongest storm to hit China that year. Noul caused three fatalities and damaged hundreds of homes in the Philippines before reaching China.