Typhoon In-fa hits China following flooding chaos

Louise Watt
·3 min read
A woman and a boy wade in a flooded street in a neighbourhood in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province, as Typhoon In-Fa lashes the eastern coast of China - AFP
A woman and a boy wade in a flooded street in a neighbourhood in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province, as Typhoon In-Fa lashes the eastern coast of China - AFP

China cancelled flights, closed businesses and suspended train services in Shanghai and neighbouring areas on Sunday as heavy winds and rains from a typhoon battered the country’s east.

Typhoon In-fa, which has brought heavy rains to the Philippines and Taiwan in recent days, made landfall on an archipelago off China’s east on Sunday lunchtime.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, but the typhoon was expected to hit coastal areas on the mainland later in the evening.

Hundreds of flights to and from Shanghai were cancelled Sunday, with more cancellations expected Monday. In Zhejiang province, to Shanghai’s south, flights were also suspended, while authorities stopped underground trains and ordered schools, businesses and markets closed.

On Saturday, large container ships were moved from Shanghai’s Yangshan port, one of the world’s busiest, as the typhoon neared.

A passenger pushes his luggage past a blank flights information board at Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, China, Sunday, July 25, 2021 - AP/Andy Wong
A passenger pushes his luggage past a blank flights information board at Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, China, Sunday, July 25, 2021 - AP/Andy Wong
Men wade in a flooded street in a neighborhood of Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province on July 25, 2021, as Typhoon In-Fa lashes the eastern coast of China - AFP
Men wade in a flooded street in a neighborhood of Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province on July 25, 2021, as Typhoon In-Fa lashes the eastern coast of China - AFP

The typhoon hit as China was still reeling from heavy flooding earlier in the week that has killed at least 63 people and collapsed almost 9,000 homes.

The flooding was triggered by record rains that began Tuesday. On Sunday, residents in Henan province in the country’s central region were still clearing away mud and wrecked cars and waiting for waters up to 2 metres deep to subside.

Across Asia, other countries were also dealing with the after-effects of days of heavy monsoon rains. In India, landslides and flooding have killed at least 124 people and injured 50. Rescuers on Sunday were searching in mud and debris for at least 100 others missing since the downpours hit Thursday.

Workers attempt to move a fallen tree due to strong winds in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province, on July 25, 2021, ahead of Typhoon In-Fa's expected landfall in the region - AFP
Workers attempt to move a fallen tree due to strong winds in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province, on July 25, 2021, ahead of Typhoon In-Fa's expected landfall in the region - AFP
A couple shelters under an umbrella by amid inclement weather in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province - AFP
A couple shelters under an umbrella by amid inclement weather in Ningbo, eastern China's Zhejiang province - AFP

Most of the victims have been in Maharasthra state in the country’s west, including more than 40 who perished when a landslide hit a hillside village south of Mumbai on Thursday, quickly flattening dozens of homes.

“Many people were washed away as they were trying to run away,” villager Jayram Mahaske said.

The rains also submerged some homes and roads, leading panicked residents to climb on to their roofs to escape the rising waters. The chief minister of Goa, also in India’s west, said the floods in that state were the worst in almost 40 years.

In the Philippines, thousands of residents have fled flooded areas and communities bordering swollen rivers in Manila and outlying provinces after heavy monsoon rains there, which have flooded low-lying villages and triggered small landslides. In one city, nearly 15,000 people were evacuated on Saturday night as water levels rose in a major river.

Forecasters said the monsoon rains in the Philippines had been intensified by Typhoon In-fa, which had skirted the country before lashing Taiwan with heavy rains and then heading for China’s east coast.