Typhoon Dolphin Batters Okinawa, Barrels Toward China's East Coast

NAHA, Japan —

Typhoon Dolphin tore through Japan's southern Okinawa prefecture on Saturday, injuring several people and cutting power to tens of thousands of buildings, before turning toward China's eastern coast, where officials shut down ports, schools and tourist sites ahead of its expected landfall.

The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (162 kph), with gusts up to 134 mph (216 kph), according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. Five elderly residents in Okinawa suffered non-life-threatening injuries, three of them after being knocked down by the wind, prefectural officials said. One more person was hurt in nearby Kagoshima prefecture, Channel NewsAsia reported. Kagoshima also bore the brunt of the outages, with nearly 39,000 buildings losing power, compared with just over 12,000 in Okinawa, according to Channel NewsAsia and The Straits Times.

Naha Airport, the main airport on Okinawa Island, closed and canceled all domestic and international flights, Deutsche Welle reported. Domestic carriers ANA and Japan Airlines also grounded flights to and from the island. Roughly 240 people had taken shelter in evacuation centers in Okinawa prefecture by Friday, Deutsche Welle reported.

China Shuts Down Its Coast

Chinese forecasters expect Dolphin to come ashore between Zhoushan in Zhejiang province and Fuding in Fujian province late Sunday or early Monday, according to the China National Meteorological Center. The storm is forecast to carry winds of 38 to 45 meters per second near its center. National authorities classified Dolphin as an orange-level typhoon, the second-highest tier, and raised the emergency response level to level three, the second-lowest, over fears of flooding and landslides.

Zhejiang province raised its coastal alert to the highest level, halted port operations and suspended 162 passenger ferry routes. Ningbo Lishe International Airport said it would stop operations Saturday night and cancel all Sunday flights, while Shanghai's Yangshan port was cleared of vessels. Some rail service in the Yangtze River Delta is set to be suspended starting Sunday. China's National Marine Forecasting Center kept its highest wave warning in place, predicting swells of 16 to 26 feet (5 to 8 meters) off Zhejiang. Forecasters said parts of eastern Zhejiang could see more than 23 inches (600 millimeters) of rain through August 12. Beijing officials said they are preparing flood control and evacuation plans for the capital.

Taiwan canceled dozens of international flights and expected heavy rain in the north, though it had not ordered evacuations as of Saturday. China's order that vessels in the Taiwan Strait follow its traffic instructions drew sharp criticism from Taipei. "The unreasonable and crude statement by the relevant Chinese Communist departments reflects an ignorance, disregard, and trampling of international order and norms. It is utterly ridiculous!" Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement, according to Deutsche Welle. Beijing claims the strait and considers Taiwan its own territory, a position rejected by both Taipei and Washington.

The typhoon has coincided with a punishing heat wave across the region. The South China Morning Post reported that Hong Kong recorded its hottest day of the year Saturday, with temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) in some areas as the storm's outer bands pushed hot air over Guangdong province and the city.