Typhoon Bebinca Pummels Shanghai, Disrupting Mid-Autumn Festival Celebrations
Typhoon Bebinca, the strongest to hit Shanghai since at least 1949, made landfall early Monday morning, bringing powerful winds and heavy rains, The Associated Press reports.
The storm disrupted travel plans for millions during China’s three-day Mid-Autumn Festival, with flights, ferries, and train services suspended in the megacity and surrounding provinces.
Bebinca, with maximum winds of 94 mph, made landfall around 7:30 a.m. in Shanghai’s bustling Pudong business district. Authorities anticipate the typhoon’s impact will extend to nearby provinces including Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Anhui.
Over 414,000 people were evacuated ahead of the storm, and more than 60,000 emergency responders and firefighters were deployed to assist in Shanghai, according to state media. Shanghai’s airports canceled hundreds of flights starting Sunday and continuing into Monday, while Hangzhou, located about 106 miles southwest of Shanghai, also planned to cancel over 180 flights.
Shanghai, home to 25 million residents, rarely experiences strong typhoons, which usually make landfall further south in China. Earlier this month, Typhoon Yagi devastated Southeast Asia, causing at least 74 deaths and dozens of missing in Myanmar.
Hainan island in China saw four deaths from Yagi, while at least 10 fatalities were reported in Thailand and 20 in the Philippines. Vietnam has reported over 230 deaths and numerous missing due to the typhoon and subsequent flooding and landslides.
