'Shanghai turns into the sea.' Typhoon Dolphin forces evacuation of over a million people

Eastern China is grappling with the aftermath of Typhoon Dolphin, the nation's most potent storm of the year, which has triggered massive evacuations, extreme rainfall, and severe flood and landslide risks. Authorities have ordered large-scale relocations in the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian, as well as the sprawling metropolis of Shanghai.

In Wenzhou city, Zhejiang province, over 900,000 residents were moved to safety, and more than 1,500 emergency shelters were established. Neighboring Fujian province saw nearly 99,000 people evacuated from high-risk areas. Shanghai experienced some of the most intense rainfall in its recent history, with one weather station in the city center recording nearly 313 mm of precipitation in just 24 hours, the highest level in over 150 years of measurements. Another station reported close to 400 mm of rain.

Images of flooded streets went viral on the Weibo platform, where the hashtag "Shanghai se transformă în mare" (Shanghai turns into the sea) quickly became a top trend. The storm has severely impacted transportation networks. Shanghai's two airports canceled over 1,300 flights, and numerous public transport services and local train routes were suspended.

Despite Dolphin being downgraded to a tropical storm on Monday morning, meteorologists warn that it continues to move north and inland, bringing heavy rainfall to provinces like Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and the Shanghai region. Forecasters predict that some areas could accumulate between 200 and 400 mm of rain in the coming days, maintaining a high risk of flooding and landslides. Before reaching China, Typhoon Dolphin had already affected southern Japan and Taiwan, causing flight cancellations, transport disruptions, and power outages.