Typhoon Bavi hits China: 2 million evacuated as year’s ‘strongest storm’ strikes

2 min readJul 12, 2026 02:11 PM IST

Huge waves crash on the coastline ahead of Typhoon Bavi in Wenling in eastern China's Zhejiang province, Friday, July 10, 2026. (Chinatopix Via AP)

Typhoon Bavi brought heavy rains in China on Sunday morning. The typhoon made its first landfall in the coastal city of Yuhuan in Zhejiang at around 11.20 pm on Saturday, before striking again, this time in Yueqing of Wenzhou city, around midnight. It is the strongest storm to hit the mainland this year.

Nearly 2 million people were evacuated ahead of Typhoon Bavi’s arrival, with most evacuations carried out in Zhejiang province. More than 1,300 trees fell across Yueqing after Typhoon Bavi struck the region, with over 700 uprooted completely, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The island’s fire department said 134 people were injured, mostly due to falls from motorbikes, slipping incidents, or being hit by falling objects. No deaths were reported, news agency Reuters said.

“The winds were very strong,” Yueqing resident Li Liangxing told Reuters. “We could hear roof tiles and tree branches falling. Of course, we were scared, but we live by the sea, so we’re used to it.”

Gesturing toward a flooded canal beside his residential compound, Li said he ​had ​never seen the water so high. “There used to be a walkway there, but ⁠now it’s underwater.” he added.

A man walks through a flooded junction in Beijing, Friday, July 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

137 international flights, more than 1600 trains cancelled

Taiwan’s Transport Ministry said 137 international flights and 62 domestic flights were cancelled on Sunday due to the storm. The impact of Bavi also disrupted transport services in China. In Zhejiang’s capital Hangzhou, two major railway stations suspended operations, and 327 flights were cancelled at Xiaoshan International Airport. In neighbouring Shanghai, 1,620 train services and 684 flights were cancelled, state-backed media outlet The Paper reported.

The storm dumped nearly 80 cm (31 inches) of rain in one area of Miaoli County in northern Taiwan.

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Emergency teams deployed excavators and chainsaws on Sunday to clear waterlogged roads blocked by fallen trees. In northern Yueqing, CCTV footage showed a landslide sending large boulders onto a mountain road, while swollen rivers submerged nearby areas.

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