Climate change

Typhoon Bavi Hits China, 2.8M Evacuated

Is this proof that climate change is supercharging storms or just natural extreme weather being overhyped?

Published JUL 13

Story

Above: Huge waves crash along the coast as Typhoon Bavi approaches Ningde, Fujian Province, China, on July 11, 2026. Image credit: Wang Dongming/China News Service/VCG/Getty Images

The Facts

Typhoon Bavi made landfall twice along the coast of Zhejiang province, first striking Yuhuan at around 11:20 p.m. local time Saturday with sustained winds of 144 km/h (89.4 mph), then making a second landfall near Qingjiang town in Wenzhou shortly after midnight. It is the strongest typhoon to hit China so far this year.
XINHUA
China Daily
Weather Monitor on X
More than 2.8 million people were evacuated across affected regions, including over 2.2 million in Zhejiang alone. Authorities opened more than 19,000 emergency shelters across the province, stocked with 72 hours' worth of essential supplies.
XINHUA
The Straits Times
The central government dispatched 70,000 relief items — including folding beds, blankets and emergency kits — to Zhejiang, Tianjin and Anhui. China's National Development and Reform Commission also allocated ¥100 million ($14.75 million) to support post-typhoon recovery in Zhejiang.
Fox4Kc
China Daily
Transportation networks across eastern China were severely disrupted. In Shanghai, 1,620 train trips and 684 flights were canceled, while in Hangzhou, two major train stations suspended all services and 327 flights were canceled at Xiaoshan International Airport.
Bangkok Post
Independent
Global Times
Before reaching mainland China, Bavi passed north of Taiwan on Saturday, dumping nearly 80 cm of rain in one area in Miaoli county. Taiwan's fire department reported at least 134 people injured, and the transport ministry said 137 international flights and 62 domestic trips were canceled.
Fox4Kc
The Straits Times
Bavi weakened to a tropical storm by Sunday morning and was later downgraded further to a severe tropical storm. The Ministry of Water Resources upgraded its flood alert to yellow, the third-highest level, warning that heavy rainfall could trigger flooding, mountain torrents and urban waterlogging.
South China Morning Post
Firstpost

Sources Split

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The Spin

Climate-concerned narrative

Typhoon Bavi is a wake-up call — climate change is making storms like this more frequent and more ferocious. Warmer oceans are fueling rapid intensification, turning average typhoon seasons into unprecedented disasters. What used to be a once-in-500-years event is now a 50-year event, and that trajectory is only getting worse.

South China Morning Post

Reuters

Climate-skeptic narrative

Blaming every typhoon on climate change ignores that extreme weather has always existed. The climate alarm movement fixates on global averages and computer models but dismisses deep oceans as the true drivers of Earth's energy. Swapping real-world observation for ideological abstractions produces bad science and worse policy.

Peter Clack on X