Typhoon Bebinca Hits Shanghai, Leading to Evacuation of Over 400,000

Taipei, Taiwan — Typhoon Bebinca, the strongest typhoon to strike Shanghai in decades, wreaked havoc across the city on Monday, flooding roadways and causing substantial damage. The storm brought powerful winds and heavy rain, prompting the evacuation of over 414,000 residents ahead of its arrival. Numerous schools were shut down, and residents were urged to stay indoors as the typhoon approached.

On Shanghai’s Chongming Island, an elderly man sustained injuries from a falling tree. He was promptly transported to a hospital for medical attention, as reported by state media.

Bebinca made landfall around 7:30 a.m. in Shanghai’s Pudong business district, boasting winds of 94 mph near its center. Images from state media revealed extensive flooding across the area, transforming roads into rivers. The storm also resulted in numerous uprooted trees and scattered branches throughout the city.

As the storm subsided, emergency responders swiftly began clearing away debris blown around during the tempest. Over 60,000 emergency personnel and firefighters were deployed to assist with the aftermath in Shanghai.

The impacts of the typhoon were significant; authorities reported that winds had uprooted or damaged more than 10,000 trees and left at least 380 households without power. Four homes were also reported damaged due to the storm’s intensity.

In addition to urban damage, the storm led to the flooding of at least 132 acres of farmland. As Typhoon Bebinca continued its trajectory inland, it impacted additional areas in Jiangsu, Anhui, and Zhejiang provinces.

The typhoon disrupted travel plans during China’s three-day Mid-Autumn Festival. Flights, ferries, and train services across Shanghai and its neighboring provinces were suspended in anticipation of the severe weather. On Sunday and into Monday, hundreds of flights were canceled at Shanghai’s airports, while Hangzhou, situated about 106 miles southwest, canceled over 180 flights. Fortunately, flight operations resumed Monday afternoon as the storm moved away from the region.

Weather authorities have indicated that Shanghai and surrounding provinces could experience up to 12 inches of rainfall from Monday through Wednesday.

Shanghai, a bustling metropolis with a population of around 25 million, is infrequently affected by typhoons, which mainly tend to strike farther south in China. Earlier this month, Typhoon Yagi wreaked havoc on Hainan island and had devastating effects in Southeast Asia. In Myanmar, Yagi resulted in at least 74 fatalities, with many others still unaccounted for. The storm also claimed four lives in Hainan, while Thailand reported ten deaths and the Philippines saw around 20 fatalities related to this weather event. Vietnam experienced significant devastation as well, with more than 230 reported deaths due to Yagi and subsequent flooding and landslides.

In a different storm event, Typhoon Shanshan weakened before striking Japan but still caused torrential rains that led to travel disruptions and was associated with several deaths.

Climatologists note that storms like Typhoon Bebinca are intensifying and becoming harder to predict as a result of climate change. The warming oceans are believed to provide more energy to fuel these severe weather occurrences, resulting in increasingly severe storms.