Typhoon Dolphin weakens but disrupts travel in east China

Typhoon Dolphin battered eastern China on Monday, triggering widespread flight disruptions and heavy rain, even as the storm's intensity waned. The weather system made landfall twice along the Zhejiang province coast on Sunday, prompting China's National Meteorological Centre to downgrade its alert level on Monday morning. However, the NMC cautioned that heavy rain would persist in parts of east and central China for another day.

Authorities escalated their flash flood alert for sections of eastern and southern Zhejiang, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Shanghai's two primary passenger airports reported 943 flight cancellations, while public transport services, including numerous local trains, were suspended in the bustling city.

Ningbo international airport in Zhejiang resumed operations around midday (0400 GMT) on Monday, but warned that some journeys could still face delays or cancellations due to the typhoon's lingering effects. Hangzhou, the provincial capital, reinitiated subway services on Monday morning after temporarily halting some train operations on Sunday.

Northern China is also bracing for extreme weather this week, with five districts in Beijing issuing red alerts for heavy rain on Monday. Some forecasts even predicted landslide and flooding risks. This storm marked the second major typhoon to hit China in two weeks, following Typhoon Noul, which struck southern Guangdong province earlier in the month.

Authorities warned that Typhoon Dolphin was the strongest storm to hit China so far in 2023. Last month, extreme weather also wreaked havoc across southern and central China, claiming 39 lives when Typhoon Maysak unleashed devastating floods in Guangxi province. The storm also brought thunderstorms and gale-force winds, which resulted in 11 deaths and 331 injuries in Hubei province.

Scientists have warned that the intensity and frequency of such extreme weather events are expected to rise as the planet continues to warm due to fossil fuel emissions. China, the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, is also a global leader in renewable energy and has set a target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.