Tropical Cyclone Dolphin Brings Heavy Rains to China in Risk to Crops

A typhoon that struck the Chinese coast on Sunday is steadily weakening after making landfall, but is set to bring widespread heavy rain through this week that could threaten crops.

Typhoon Dolphin has weakened to a tropical storm after making two landfalls in eastern China on Sunday evening, according to the China Meteorological Administration. Powerful winds and intense rains had triggered widespread transport disruptions, including the closure of Shanghai’s two main airports.

The weather system is continuing to move northwards, posing a “potentially significant inland rainfall event” that could damage farmlands, said James Caron, director of meteorological operations for North America and Asia at Atmospheric G2. Heavy rain “at this point in the growing season” can be damaging rather than beneficial, he said.

Torrential rains totaling up to 400 millimeters (15.7 inches), thunderstorms and strong convective weather are set to menace large swathes of land around the eastern Yangtze on Monday and Tuesday, including Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei and Henan provinces, according to the CMA.

Key crops in the region like corn and barley begin their harvests in August, while soybean crops are harvested beginning September.

“The strong winds and rain will cause crop flooding and lodging, fruit cracking and drop, and damage to agricultural and fishery facilities, hindering the harvesting of ripe fruits,” the weather agency said in a bulletin published on Monday morning.

Remnants of the tropical cyclone will interact with colder air as it pushes further north, likely triggering extremely heavy rains around the agriculture-heavy North China Plain from Wednesday into the weekend, the CMA added. Low-lying farmland will face high risks of waterlogging, and potentially damage rice and corn crops, it said.

“The ultimate agricultural impact will depend heavily on exactly where the remnant circulation and associated rain bands track,” Caron said. “A relatively modest shift in that corridor could substantially change which production areas receive the highest totals.”

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Top photo: Officials help evacuate local residents in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province on Aug. 9. Source: AFP/Getty Images. Bloomberg.