With swelling rivers and flash floods on the rise, authorities have evacuated hundreds of thousands across several provinces

Typhoon Gaemi has made its way into southeastern China after a powerful and turbulent crossing of the Taiwan Strait. The arrival of Gaemi has led to urgent warnings about rising rivers, flash floods, and severe waterlogging in various cities and provinces that were already grappling with extreme rainfall from earlier storms.

This storm, the third and most intense typhoon to strike China’s eastern seaboard this year, made landfall in Fujian province at 7:50 pm local time (11:50 GMT) on Thursday. Gaemi brought with it fierce winds reaching up to 227 kilometers per hour (141 miles per hour), some of the strongest winds ever recorded in the Western Pacific. In anticipation of the storm, around 240,800 people in Fujian were evacuated from their homes.

Even though Gaemi has slightly weakened since its landfall in Putian, a major city in Fujian with over 3 million residents, its massive storm bands are expected to bring heavy rainfall to at least ten provinces in China in the coming days. The arrival of Gaemi is being compared to last year’s Typhoon Doksuri, which caused unprecedented flooding as far north as Beijing and resulted in nearly $30 billion in damages nationwide.

Authorities are concerned about rising water levels in the Yangtze River’s lower reaches, as well as in the vast Poyang and Dongting lakes in central China. These levels could return to dangerous highs seen earlier this year following intense summer rains. Beijing has issued warnings that Gaemi’s high moisture content might lead to significant rainfall even in the capital, about 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) north of Putian, despite the storm weakening into a tropical depression.

In northern China, where the soil is still saturated from recent storms, Gaemi’s rains could lead to flash floods and waterlogging. The storm’s impact extends beyond China, having intensified seasonal rains in the Philippines earlier this week. The death toll in the Philippines has climbed to 22, with at least three individuals still missing, according to local police. The Philippine coastguard reported that an oil tanker, MT Terra Nova, loaded with approximately 1.4 million liters (370,000 gallons) of industrial fuel oil, sank off Bataan province early on Thursday. Rescuers managed to save 15 of the 16 crew members aboard.

In Taiwan, Typhoon Gaemi has already caused significant destruction. The storm resulted in three fatalities, extensive flooding, and the sinking of a freighter shortly after it made landfall on Wednesday night. Some areas in southern Taiwan have recorded nearly 2,200 millimeters (87 inches) of rainfall since the storm began affecting the region. The storm also led to widespread power outages, impacting about half a million households, though most have now had their power restored according to Taipower.

In addition to the three reported deaths, the typhoon injured around 380 people in Taiwan. A Tanzania-flagged freighter with nine Myanmar nationals on board sank off the southern coast near the port city of Kaohsiung. Of the crew, three have been found alive on the shoreline, as confirmed by Taiwan’s coastguard.

Taiwan has been severely impacted, with images showing flooded streets across various cities and counties. The severe weather has caused offices, schools, and financial markets to close for a second consecutive day. Trains were halted until 3 pm local time (07:00 GMT), and a total of 195 international flights, along with all domestic flights, were canceled.

Overall, the effects of Typhoon Gaemi have been widespread and devastating, illustrating the powerful impact such storms can have across multiple regions. The combination of intense winds, heavy rainfall, and flooding has posed serious challenges for affected areas, highlighting the need for effective response and recovery efforts to mitigate the damage and support those in need.