Local governments and emergency services across central and eastern China have mobilized all-out disaster response efforts, deploying rescue teams, pre-discharging reservoirs, and shuttering tourist sites, as Typhoon Dolphin brings torrential rains and fierce gales in parts of the country.
Typhoon Dolphin, the 13th typhoon of the year, made two landfalls in east China's Zhejiang Province on Sunday, according to the National Meteorological Center (NMC). It has been pushing northwestward following the landfall, packing fierce gales and heavy rain.
In Zhoukou, a city in central China's Henan Province, water management authorities opened sluice gates of reservoirs to lower river levels.
To mitigate severe erosion risks at the turbulent confluence of the Shahe and Yinghe rivers, crews pre-positioned repair stones for dike reinforcement.
Local authorities also cleared tree branches and sand from river channels.
Meanwhile, all outdoor scenic spots and campsites across the city were temporarily closed.
Bracing for up to 150 millimeters of rainfall brought by Typhoon Dolphin, authorities in Anyang City of Henan have pre-discharged local reservoirs, dropping the Xiaonanhai Reservoir below its seasonal limit to carve out 4.5 million cubic meters of flood storage capacity.
Local authorities also evacuated residents from mountainous and low-lying areas and deployed emergency equipment, including rescue boats, pumps, and sandbags.
As the typhoon swept across several provinces in eastern China, torrential storm rains compounded by tidal backflow inundated streets up to waist-height in the aging Huayuan Xincun, a residential community in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, marking the worst flooding the neighborhood has seen in decades.
Nearly 200 shops along streets were flooded, the local authorities said.
Power repair crews were dispatched to restore electricity to flood-affected households, while workers cleared clogged drainage manholes and removed debris to accelerate water recession.
In east China's Anhui Province, fire and rescue services responded to a surge of storm hazards by Typhoon Dolphin.
In cities including Chuzhou, Ma'anshan, Huainan, and Fuyang, firefighters used high-altitude gear and specialized ropes to dismantle wind-lashed steel sheets, secure precariously-hanging-rooftop water heaters, and clear uprooted trees blocking roadways.
China mobilizes emergency response as Typhoon Dolphin batters central, eastern regions
