Typhoon Dolphin dissipated after two days but delivered more than one-third of Beijing’s annual rainfall within a 24-hour period [1].
The extreme precipitation caused sudden flooding in the Chinese capital and surrounding inland areas, testing the city's drainage infrastructure and emergency response capabilities.
Emergency crews worked to secure loose structures to prevent further damage. A fire rescue worker said that if steel plates are not firmly fixed, they could fall and destroy signs on other buildings.
Rescue efforts involved the use of specialized amphibious vehicles to reach stranded residents. Chu Hong-bing, a rescue leader, said the vehicles operate on tracks in water depths up to 1.2 meters [3], and float once the water exceeds that depth.
Local authorities coordinated the movement of vulnerable populations as the storm's moisture surged inland. Approximately 300 people were evacuated during the typhoon [2]. Following the initial evacuations, rescue teams focused on transporting residents who were stranded by the floods to hospitals.
While the storm system officially vanished, the lingering moisture produced intense rainfall over the region [1]. This pattern of a dissipating storm continuing to dump heavy rain inland has complicated the recovery process for Beijing's municipal services.
“More than one-third of Beijing’s annual rainfall fell within 24 hours.”
The impact of Typhoon Dolphin demonstrates that the dissipation of a tropical cyclone does not necessarily signal the end of its threat. The transition of a storm into a remnant low can still funnel massive amounts of moisture inland, leading to flash flooding in urban centers like Beijing that may not be prepared for such concentrated volumes of rain in a single day.
