China issues red alert as Typhoon Dolphin approaches eastern coast

China issued its highest-level red alert for Typhoon Dolphin on Sunday as the powerful storm approached the country's eastern coast, threatening to bring strong winds and torrential rain across a broad swath of eastern China.

Meteorologists noted that Dolphin could become the first recorded storm to form near the International Date Line and make landfall in China while maintaining at least tropical storm strength. As of 10 am Sunday, the center of Typhoon Dolphin, the 13th typhoon of the year, was located over the southern East China Sea, approximately 215 kilometers east of Wenzhou in Zhejiang province, according to the National Meteorological Center.

The typhoon had maximum sustained winds of 45 meters per second near its center, with a central pressure of 950 hectopascals. Dolphin was moving westward at 20 to 25 kilometers per hour and was expected to make landfall from Sunday evening to early Monday along the coast between Zhoushan in Zhejiang and Fuding in Fujian province. It was forecast to make landfall with maximum winds of 38 to 45 meters per second before weakening as it moves west-northwest inland.

Dong Lin, chief forecaster at the National Meteorological Center, reported that from Sunday to Tuesday, winds of 20.8 to 32.7 meters per second were expected over much of the East China Sea, waters near the Diaoyu Islands, the waters east of Taiwan, Hangzhou Bay, the Zhejiang coast, and the Yangtze River estuary.

From Sunday to Wednesday, heavy to extremely heavy rain is expected across parts of Fujian, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei, Henan, Shandong, Hebei, Beijing, and Tianjin, as the typhoon's core and outer circulation interact with regional weather systems.

Accumulated rainfall in affected areas could reach 100 to 300 millimeters, with some areas in northern and eastern Zhejiang, the Huangshan and Dabie mountain regions in Anhui, and northern Henan potentially receiving 350 to 500 mm. Some locations may exceed 600 mm.

From Aug 13 to 16, the typhoon's remnants, combined with weather systems moving in from the north, could bring another round of heavy rain to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, Liaoning, and northern Shandong, forecasters said.

Dolphin has stood out for its unusually long journey and prolonged strength. The typhoon formed near the International Date Line and will have traveled more than 6,000 kilometers before reaching China's coast. Its lifetime is expected to exceed 15 days, which is more than three times the average lifespan of a typical typhoon.

In addition, the radius of its gale-force winds has reached 420 to 450 kilometers, while the overall circulation spans about 1,300 kilometers. As a result, the East China Sea could experience more than three days of strong winds before landfall, while much of eastern China could see prolonged heavy rainfall.