FUZHOU, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – Typhoon Dolphin prompted the evacuation of approximately 167,900 residents in Fujian Province as heavy rains and flooding impacted eastern China. By 7 a.m. Monday, residents in vulnerable land and coastal zones in Fujian had been relocated. Separately, Shanghai evacuated around 215,600 people from at-risk areas by late Sunday. Dolphin made landfall twice in Zhejiang Province on Sunday before moving inland and gradually weakening.
During the storm response, Fujian authorities suspended 686 passenger routes and 658 train services. They also shut down 234 major tourist sites and canceled numerous cultural and tourism events. In Shanghai, more than 900 flights at the city’s two main airports were canceled on Monday. The heavy rainfall caused flooding in parts of the financial hub and disrupted public transit. These precautions followed widespread weather warnings across coastal regions exposed to Dolphin’s winds and rain.
Dolphin, the 13th typhoon of 2026, arrived in Zhejiang with strong winds on Sunday, making landfall near Yuhuan in Taizhou at approximately 5:30 p.m. with peak winds of 42 meters per second, equivalent to about 151 kilometers per hour. The storm made another landfall in Zhejiang before progressing further inland. Its extensive circulation brought heavy rains throughout Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, and neighboring areas of eastern China as the storm diminished in strength.
Storm weakens following Zhejiang landfalls
By 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dolphin’s center had reached Huanggang in Hubei Province, central China. The National Meteorological Center classified the system as a tropical storm and maintained a blue typhoon warning. Maximum winds in its outer circulation reached 18 meters per second, with central pressure at 995 hectopascals. The storm was moving west-northwest at about 15 kilometers per hour. Continued heavy rains affected many provinces well beyond the initial coastal landfall zone of Dolphin.
On Monday, the Ministry of Water Resources activated a Level IV flood emergency response for Hubei, Henan, Hebei, and Shandong. It also sustained a Level III response in Zhejiang, as officials monitored rivers and regions vulnerable to flash floods. Central government allocated 120 million yuan to Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, and Jiangxi to support rescue operations, temporary shelters, hazard mitigation, safety inspections, and repair work on flood-damaged homes and infrastructure.
Flood management efforts extend further inland
Forecasts for Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday indicated heavy rainfall across a broad swath of eastern and central China. Areas likely affected include Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Shandong, and Hebei, with Beijing and Tianjin also remaining within the heavy rain zone. Rainfall estimates ranged from 250 to 350 millimeters in parts of southwestern Shandong and central and eastern Henan. Strong winds persisted along sections of the eastern coast, the adjacent seas, the Yangtze River estuary, and Hangzhou Bay.
Authorities continued to monitor smaller rivers, mountainous regions, and communities susceptible to flooding as Dolphin moved deeper inland. The evacuation count of 167,900 refers specifically to Fujian Province, rather than the entirety of eastern China. Shanghai also reported an additional 215,600 evacuations, and Zhejiang conducted large-scale relocations prior to the storm’s landfall. By Tuesday morning, Dolphin’s strength had significantly diminished from its Zhejiang landfall intensity, although its circulation still caused heavy rainfall across central and eastern China.