Typhoon Dolphin weakened after making two landfalls along the Zhejiang coast on Sunday, but it continues to cause widespread travel disruptions in eastern China [7].
The storm's impact underscores the vulnerability of China's coastal economic hubs to extreme weather, forcing the government to prioritize mass evacuations and the suspension of critical transport infrastructure to prevent casualties.
Authorities issued evacuation orders for about 1.6 million people [6], while other reports indicate more than 1 million people were successfully evacuated [4]. In some areas, more than 300,000 people were relocated preemptively to avoid the storm's peak [5]. These measures were triggered by heavy rainfall and flood alerts that persisted through Monday, Aug. 10.
The transport sector faced significant setbacks as safety protocols led to thousands of flight cancellations. While some reports cite more than 1,000 flights cancelled [1], other data suggests the number exceeded 1,300 [2]. In Shanghai specifically, the disruption was severe, with nearly 1,500 flights cancelled [3].
Zhejiang province bore the brunt of the storm's initial impact. The typhoon made two separate landfalls along the coast on Sunday evening [7] — a pattern that prolonged the period of heavy rain and flooding in the region. The effects of the storm extended beyond the coast, with parts of Beijing also experiencing disruptions.
Local officials maintained flood alerts as the weakened system moved inland. The combination of high-volume rainfall and the storm's trajectory necessitated the continued suspension of travel to ensure public safety during the cleanup and recovery phase.
“About 1.6 million people faced evacuation orders”
The scale of the evacuations and the volume of flight cancellations in major hubs like Shanghai demonstrate the high economic and logistical cost of storm mitigation in eastern China. By prioritizing preemptive relocation and aggressive travel suspensions, authorities aimed to minimize loss of life, but the disruption to the transport network highlights the ongoing challenge of maintaining infrastructure resilience against intensifying Pacific typhoons.
