Typhoon Dolphin Makes Landfall in Zhejiang as China's Strongest Storm of 2026
Typhoon Dolphin made landfall near Yuhuan in Zhejiang province, China, at approximately 5:30pm local time (0930 GMT) on 9 August 2026, becoming the most powerful tropical cyclone to strike the country this year. Maximum sustained winds at landfall reached 94 mph (151 km/h), placing Dolphin at the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale. The Guardian
Before reaching the Chinese mainland, Dolphin swept through Japan's southern Okinawa prefecture, injuring six people and cutting power to more than 50,000 buildings. The Japan Meteorological Agency, which designated the system as T2613, had classified Dolphin as a Large, Very Strong Typhoon at 14:00 JST on 8 August, with a central pressure of 945 hPa and maximum winds of 45 m/s (85 kt). By 21:00 the same day, the agency downgraded its classification to a Large Tropical Storm with central pressure of 994 hPa and maximum winds of 18 m/s (35 kt). Japan Meteorological Agency
The scale of China's preparatory response was substantial. More than one million people were evacuated from their homes across eastern China. In Zhejiang province alone, the city of Wenzhou relocated over 900,000 residents and opened more than 1,000 emergency shelters. Shanghai evacuated at least 30,300 people and cancelled roughly 1,500 flights, according to flight-tracking data provider VariFlight. Shanghai's Yangshan port also cleared ships from its berths and moved more than 500 small and medium-sized vessels to shelter. In neighbouring Fujian province, authorities evacuated 98,900 people from high-risk areas, suspended 55 coastal passenger ferry routes, halted all 115 offshore construction projects, and moved 290 construction vessels to sheltered waters. The Guardian; Xinhua
The multi-tiered emergency response framework was activated across at least five provincial-level jurisdictions. The China Meteorological Administration (CMA) raised its national emergency response to Level II and held a dedicated meeting to deploy meteorological services for typhoon defense. Zhejiang province escalated progressively through Level III and Level II before activating Level I, the highest tier. Shanghai's meteorological department also activated a Level I response. Fujian raised its response to Level II, Jiangsu to Level III, and Anhui to Level IV. The National Meteorological Centre issued a red typhoon warning, China's most severe alert level. CMA
The rainfall and flood-risk forecasts remain acute. Forecasters project that parts of central and eastern Zhejiang could receive 250–500 mm (10–20 inches) of rain from the system. China's water resources ministry has warned that the Qiantang, Yong, Jiao, and Shuiyang rivers could experience major flooding. Looking at the forward track, Wang Haiping, chief forecaster at the National Meteorological Centre, said Dolphin would track westward before slowing over central and south-western China and gradually losing strength. The Guardian
The broad context here is that China's eastern and south-eastern seaboard faces a recurring typhoon season that places enormous pressure on a dense corridor of infrastructure: major ports, manufacturing hubs, and urban agglomerations stretching from Fujian through Zhejiang to Shanghai. The evacuation figures and port-clearing operations reflect an established civil-defense doctrine that prioritises mass pre-emptive relocation and maritime asset protection, particularly given the region's concentration of refining capacity, container terminals, and industrial zones. The transition of a system rated "Very Strong Typhoon" by JMA near Okinawa to a Category 1-equivalent at Chinese landfall illustrates the rapid intensity decay that can occur as cyclones traverse cooler shelf waters or encounter land interaction, though the inland flood risk from residual moisture and orographic lift persists well beyond landfall. The activation of every emergency-response tier from Level I through Level IV across six jurisdictions signals that Chinese authorities treated Dolphin as a system with both coastal-impact and inland-flooding dimensions, with the latter potentially affecting communities far from the landfall point as the remnant low tracks westward.
