The strongest storm to hit China this year made landfall near Yuhuan in Zhejiang province on August 9, 2026, with maximum sustained winds of 151 km/h, prompting evacuations of over one million people across Zhejiang, Fujian, and Shanghai [11][15][2]. Shanghai's Xujiahui station recorded 312.9 mm of rain in 24 hours — the highest since measurements began in 1872 — while the storm disrupted flights, port operations, and public transit across the eastern seaboard [7][9]. The storm's effects extended across the Philippines, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong [3][6].
Shanghai residents described flooding unlike anything they had witnessed in the city. Hou Lina, a sales worker and Shanghai resident, told Der Spiegel: "Ich lebe seit zehn Jahren in Shanghai, aber das ist das erste Mal, dass der Taifun uns solche Unannehmlichkeiten bereitet und solche Überschwemmungen verursacht hat" (I have lived in Shanghai for ten years, but this is the first time a typhoon has caused us such inconvenience and such flooding) [1][6]. Another resident, Ming, told El País: "Nunca había visto la ciudad así" (I had never seen the city like this), describing non-stop rain and water reaching her knees [7]. Zhejiang province's post-storm assessment classified Dolphin as a "severely severe impact" typhoon, recording a provincial average rainfall of 215 mm and a single-station maximum of 970 mm [20].
A contrasting assessment came from Chen, a tourist from Guangdong stranded in Shanghai, who told The Guardian: "To us Guangdong people, this typhoon is as ordinary as having a meal and feeling the wind. It's just part of everyday life" [9][15]. France 24's English-language headline described "some flooding in eastern China" [14].
Chinese state media and government agencies detailed extensive pre-landfall measures across aviation, maritime, and port sectors. Wenzhou alone relocated more than 900,000 people and opened over 1,500 shelters [9]. Fujian Maritime Authorities suspended 55 coastal passenger ferry routes, halted 115 offshore construction projects, and moved 290 construction vessels to sheltered waters [15]. The Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration cleared ships from Yangshan port berths and moved more than 500 small and medium-sized vessels to shelter [15][18]. Xinhua reported that 2.56 million party members were mobilized in Taizhou and described the evacuation as a "people-first" effort [19]. Kong Xiangguo, political commissar of the Taizhou Maritime Safety Administration, stated that 625 commercial ships were sheltering in 18 areas with 31 rescue tugs deployed [19]. Shanghai's two airports cancelled between approximately 943 and 1,500 flights, according to airport authorities and VariFlight data [1][5][15]. Shanghai Municipal Transport Authorities completely suspended four metro lines and shortened service on others [12].
As Dolphin weakened after making landfall twice in Zhejiang, China's National Meteorological Centre downgraded its typhoon alert to the lowest level but warned that parts of east and central China would continue to receive heavy rain [4][5][10]. Chief forecaster Wang Haiping stated that the typhoon's slower movement could prolong heavy rainfall and increase the threat of flooding and landslides, particularly in mountainous areas and along smaller rivers [2][15]. The Ministry of Water Resources warned that the Qiantang, Yong, Jiao, and Shuiyang rivers could experience major flooding [2][15]. Meteorologist Tang Xiaojing stated: "The impact of the rainfall is very wide," covering more than 10 provinces and cities, with risks of flash floods, landslides, and mudslides [26].
Scientists cited in multiple outlets linked the storm's intensity to global warming. Johnny Chan, science adviser at the Asia-Pacific Typhoon Collaborative Research Center, told NPR: "We can expect more severe typhoons in the Pacific, and so some of those will definitely hit some parts of Asia — Japan, Korea, China, Philippines, Vietnam and so on" [26]. A study published in Communications Earth & Environment concluded that climate change will expand areas of the Northwest Pacific exposed to extreme rainfall associated with typhoons in coming decades [7]. CNA and DW contextualized Dolphin within a series of recent extreme weather events in China, linking their increasing intensity to climate change and fossil fuel emissions [4][5].
The storm's impact extended well beyond mainland China. In the Philippines, at least 15 people died from floods and landslides triggered by the enhanced southwest monsoon, according to Der Spiegel and Tagesschau, while the BBC reported eight deaths over the same period; more than 750,000 people were affected nationwide, with over 8,000 people in emergency shelters per Tagesschau and more than 7,000 per the BBC [6][12][3]. Officials reported five people rescued and seven missing after a landslide struck three houses in Baguio [16]. In Japan's Okinawa, seven people were injured — including a 101-year-old man — and 252 people evacuated, with fallen trees and power outages reported, according to the local newspaper Ryukyu Shimpo, though the BBC and other wire reports put the injury toll lower, at five and six respectively [30][3][15][17]. Taiwan reported 632 incidents and six injuries [22][25]. Hong Kong, over 800 km from the landfall point, recorded its highest temperature since measurements began in 1884: 36.9°C [11][23].
Chinese authorities detained individuals for spreading storm-related misinformation. BBC reported the administrative detention of two individuals for creating or sharing AI-generated and misleading content [3][21]. El País detailed the case of a 60-year-old man detained for creating an AI-generated fake video [7]. Wire-service reporting also noted that China's port closures and maritime traffic control orders in the Taiwan Strait ahead of landfall produced a diplomatic dispute [17][24].
Xiao Chan, deputy director of the National Meteorological Center, stated that 2-3 typhoons are expected to make landfall or significantly affect China in August, with 1-2 strong typhoons potentially moving northward [29]. In the Philippines, weather specialist John Manalo of PAGASA stated that rainy weather may persist into the following week [31].