Dolphin lashes eastern China after mass evacuations

More than a million people have been evacuated in eastern China after Typhoon Dolphin roared ashore, flooding streets, shutting tourist sites and forcing nearly 1,000 flight cancellations in Shanghai alone.

The storm made landfall late Sunday in Yuhuan, in Zhejiang province, with winds of about 150 kph (94 mph), meteorological authorities said. It made a second landfall about an hour later in Wenzhou. China had issued its highest-level red alert before the storm arrived, calling Dolphin the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year.

By Monday, authorities had downgraded Dolphin to a tropical storm as it moved inland and weakened, but forecasters continued to warn of torrential rain, severe flooding and landslides through Wednesday as the system pushed north and deeper into the country.

Heavy rain was forecast across a wide swath of eastern and central China, including Zhejiang, Shanghai, Anhui, Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan and Hubei. Al Jazeera reported that rain was also forecast through August 10 across northern Fujian, northeastern Jiangxi, central and southern Anhui, and much of Jiangsu. Parts of central and eastern Zhejiang could receive 250mm to 500mm of rain, forecasters said.

Shanghai’s two airports cancelled 943 flights because of the storm, reducing capacity by nearly 40 percent, state broadcaster CCTV said, according to Al Jazeera. The BBC reported that nearly 1,000 flights were cancelled in Shanghai alone on Monday. Authorities urged residents to avoid outdoor activities, and Al Jazeera reported that people in Shanghai were urged to work from home where possible.

Several major tourist attractions closed, including parts of Disneyland and Legoland, as well as viewing platforms along the Bund in Shanghai. State media footage showed ground-floor businesses flooded in the city’s former French Concession, a popular area with tourists, and people wading through ankle-deep water.

Local media reported that search and rescue crews in Wenling, Zhejiang, were looking for a nine-year-old boy swept into the sea during the storm. Chinese officials have not reported any casualties.

Evacuations were especially large in Zhejiang. Wenzhou authorities relocated more than 900,000 residents and opened more than 1,000 emergency shelters, while about 390,000 people were evacuated in Taizhou, the BBC reported. Al Jazeera, citing state media, reported nearly 100,000 people evacuated in Shanghai and another 99,000 in neighboring Fujian province. In Fujian, maritime authorities suspended dozens of passenger ferry routes and halted more than 100 offshore construction projects.

In Hangzhou, Zhejiang’s capital, authorities waived parking fees in all public spaces for drivers seeking shelter from strong winds and floodwaters.

CCTV reported that Dolphin traveled about 6,000km before landfall, suggesting a lifespan more than three times that of an average typhoon. The broadcaster also described the storm as having a massive circulation and intense rainfall capacity.

The storm had already brought torrential rain to the Philippines, parts of northern Taiwan and Japan’s Okinawa island before reaching China. The Philippines’ Office of Civil Defence said eight people died because of heavy monsoon rains brought by Dolphin and storms earlier in the week, and more than 7,000 people were sheltering in evacuation centers nationwide. In Okinawa, five elderly people suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to the prefectural government.

In Beijing, authorities raised warnings for torrential rain and said the city was prepared to activate its flood control response Tuesday morning, Al Jazeera reported. The capital was expected to see “significant rainfall” from Tuesday to Thursday, with warnings of possible flash floods and landslides in surrounding mountainous areas.