The strongest Typhoon Dolphin, an unusually resilient storm system that travelled nearly 6,000 km (3,728 miles) further inland to the central Chinese province of Hubei. Heavy flooding in streets forced the closure of tourist areas and halted construction projects, as forecasters warned of extreme rainfall across a broad swathe of the country. Hubei, a leading auto and high-tech electronics production hub, homeland of more than 58 million people, was just recovering from two rare tornadoes last month in the wake of Typhoon Maysak, which killed at least 11 people.
In the city of “Xiangyang”, where Hubei authorities issued a yellow warning for landslides and floods, pedestrians waded through water-covered streets as shared electric scooters were partially submerged. As many as four populated districts on the capital’s outskirts activated the highest level of emergency flood responses. The city prepared for the expected arrival of more than one-third of its annual rainfall over 24 hours starting late on Tuesday.
One of the ladies said, “This area always gets flooded when it rains. If it continues like this, the waters could reach my home,” she said.
Tourists’ most attractive destinations across the province have announced temporary closures, including the popular Three Gorges Dam in Yichang, along with two of Xiangyang’s 59 major scenic spots, which were shut. Almost 107 major highway and waterway construction projects deemed high-risk have been suspended.
As said by “Wang Xiaoling,” deputy director of Hubei’s provincial meteorological observatory, Dolphin’s peripheral airflow will be forced to rise when it encounters the mountains in Hubei’s western region, causing rainfall to intensify several times over.
