Typhoon Dolphin battered Japan’s southern Okinawa prefecture on Saturday, injuring five people and disrupting electricity supplies to about 14,000 buildings as the powerful storm continued its northwestward path towards China.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the typhoon was located about 160 kilometres northwest of Kume Island in Okinawa at 3am GMT, moving at around 15 kilometres per hour. The storm brought maximum sustained winds of 162 kilometres per hour, with gusts reaching up to 216 kilometres per hour.
Five elderly people suffered non-life-threatening injuries, including three who fell because of the strong winds, according to the Okinawan prefectural government. The severe weather also prompted ANA and Japan Airlines to cancel flights serving the affected region.
Okinawa and Amami Island in Kagoshima prefecture were identified as the main areas at risk in Japan. Authorities and residents were urged to remain cautious as strong winds and heavy rainfall continued to pose a threat across affected areas.
Meanwhile, China began taking precautionary measures ahead of the typhoon’s expected landfall along its eastern and southern coastline between late Sunday and early Monday. The China National Meteorological Centre said the storm was most likely to make landfall between Zhoushan in Zhejiang province and Fuding in Fujian province.
The storm is expected to bring winds of between 38 and 45 metres per second near its centre, while heavy rain and strong winds could affect parts of eastern China until August 12. Forecasts warned that some areas of eastern Zhejiang could receive more than 600 millimetres of rainfall.
Zhejiang has raised its coastal typhoon alert to the highest level, while port operations have been halted and 162 passenger ferry routes suspended. Ningbo Lishe International Airport also announced that operations would stop from 11.30pm Saturday, with all flights on Sunday suspended.
In Shanghai, vessels had already been cleared from Yangshan Port by late Friday, while some rail services across the Yangtze River Delta are scheduled to be suspended from Sunday as authorities prepare for the storm’s impact.
Taiwan also recorded disruptions, with 63 international flights cancelled due to the typhoon. Heavy rain was expected across northern parts of the island over the weekend, although authorities had not ordered evacuations as of Saturday.
China has also instructed vessels travelling through the Taiwan Strait to comply with its traffic control measures during the typhoon. Taiwan condemned the move as “ridiculous”, arguing that Beijing has no authority to restrict access to international waters.
China regards Taiwan as part of its territory and also claims the strategically important Taiwan Strait, while Taiwan and the United States reject Beijing’s territorial claim.
