Typhoon Dolphin’s remnants swamp Beijing as China braces for more extreme rainfall

Typhoon Dolphin's remnants dumped torrential rain on Beijing and vast swathes of China on Wednesday, causing roads to flood and stranding vehicles, state news agency Xinhua reported. The capital issued its second-highest rainstorm warning, halting 250 bus routes and closing 150 tourist attractions. A multi-lane road in the city's Changping district turned into a river, forcing cars and buses to become partially submerged, according to footage shared on Chinese social media.

Beijing's northern Changping district recorded the highest hourly rainfall at 90.7 mm (3.6 inches) within an hour after 9am. The storm, once the strongest of the year, weakened after traveling roughly 6,000 km (3,700 miles) before making landfall in eastern Zhejiang province on Sunday. However, its remnants continued to bring tropical moisture inland, raising flood risks in northern and central regions.

In Zhejiang's coastal city of Yuhuan, heavy rain submerged nearby streets, while scores of vehicles lined a bridge that remained above rising waters. Nearly 200 mm (8 inches) of rain fell in the area, verified by Reuters. Rainfall records were shattered in parts of Zhejiang, Henan, and Hubei provinces this week. Wugang city logged 209.5 mm (8.2 inches) of rain in a single day, surpassing its August record, while Xiangyang received 169.1 mm (6.6 inches).

Authorities warned residents across northern and central China to brace for additional days of heavy rain as the storm's extensive rain bands moved inland. China faces worsening storms and rainfall events tied to climate change, with an emerging El Niño pattern contributing to higher temperatures and potentially more intense typhoons.

The extreme weather is already costing the country billions annually, disrupting manufacturing, damaging infrastructure, and destroying crops. Chinese meteorologists are increasingly relying on AI-powered weather models alongside traditional forecasting systems to improve warnings and bolster the nation's capacity to cope with increasingly severe weather.