Typhoon Bavi hits China: Evacuations, damage, AI bloggers | allfacts360
Typhoon "Bavi" reaches China: Millions evacuated, bloggers with AI forecasts come under scrutiny
Beijing, July 11, 2026
China in Zahlen und Graphiken / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
Summary
Typhoon "Bavi" is approaching the eastern Chinese coast and has triggered evacuations of millions of people in China and Taiwan. Chinese state media are also warning bloggers who use AI weather models to publish their own typhoon forecasts — saying this violates the Meteorology Law.
Beijing, July 11, 2026
Typhoon "Bavi" struck northern and eastern Taiwan on Saturday with heavy rain and strong winds and, according to the Chinese weather service, is heading toward the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang, where it is expected to make landfall early Sunday morning (local time).
According to the Chinese weather service, the typhoon is expected to make landfall in the eastern province of Zhejiang early Sunday morning (local time). In Taiwan, the outer bands of the storm already hit the north and east of the island on Saturday, as reported by the broadcaster Deutschlandfunk, citing dpa. "Zudem wurden heute mehr als 1.100 Inlands- und Auslandsflüge in Taiwan gestrichen und der Fährverkehr eingestellt."
From super typhoon to typhoon: Course and weakening
At times, "Bavi" had been classified as a so-called super typhoon, but it had weakened somewhat recently. On Monday, "Bavi" had still hit the U.S. territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific as a super typhoon. According to Taiwan's weather agency CWA, the storm has continued to "lose intensity." Since then, the radius of strong winds has decreased to 350 kilometers, said Jason Cheng of the CWA to the news agency AFP.
In Taiwan, more than 14,000 residents were evacuated as a precaution from mountain regions at risk of landslides. Around 68,920 households were temporarily without power on Friday after heavy rain and strong winds damaged the electricity grid. Taiwan's weather agency CWA warned of "extreme heavy rain" over northern Taiwan and "dangerous waves" of up to ten meters in height along the coast for Saturday. Individual gusts reached speeds of around 180 kilometers per hour, and wind speeds of up to 144 kilometers per hour were most recently recorded.
Preparations in Taiwan: Power outages and evacuations
Although the outer bands of the storm already hit northern and eastern Taiwan on Saturday, authorities have so far reported no major damage. Numerous shops remained closed, ferry services were suspended, and more than 28,000 soldiers were on standby for emergencies. According to the authorities' assessment, the coastal region, including the capital Taipei, is likely to be among the areas in Taiwan most severely affected by the cyclone.
In China, authorities have prepared for a significantly larger scale of damage. As Chinese state media reported, more than 500,000 residents in the eastern province of Zhejiang alone have temporarily left their homes. In the eastern Chinese metropolis of Wenzhou, 1.7 million people had left their homes and apartments, according to state media. Evacuations were also ordered in Fujian province. The news agency Reuters reported, citing Chinese state media, that more than 1.7 million people in Zhejiang alone were affected by evacuation measures.
Millions of people brought to safety in China
In China and Taiwan, hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in preparation for Typhoon "Bavi." In total, China has brought more than 900,000 or nearly two million people to safety, according to official figures. "Exceptionally heavy rainfall" is expected for the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian, as the state television channel CCTV reported. According to state media, those affected include the capital Beijing as well as the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian.
In the capital Beijing, more than 100,000 people were also brought to safety due to heavy rainfall, the city's administration said. However, these evacuations in Beijing were not due to the typhoon but to heavy precipitation. In recent days, severe storms with storm surges and landslides had already occurred in other parts of China.
Previous storms and damage in the region
The Philippines, where outer bands of the typhoon were also felt, have so far reported at least 17 deaths. In the Philippines, the tropical cyclone had triggered a landslide the previous day. At least 17 people lost their lives. A further nine people are still considered missing. In southern and central China, storms had already caused severe damage earlier this week: 39 people died in floods, 26 of them alone after the breach of a dam.
Parallel to the approaching landfall, Chinese online activists who use AI models to publish their own typhoon forecasts are coming under scrutiny. The state broadcaster China Media Group, also known as Voice of China, reported on Thursday that some bloggers called themselves "weather enthusiasts" and published forecasts based on various open-source AI weather models. According to the report, some bloggers offer location-based typhoon forecasts for a fee.
Dispute over AI forecasts: Bloggers in the focus of state media
On Thursday evening, a blogger from Shandong province had published forecasts about Typhoon "Bavi" on social media. He stated there was a "90 per cent chance" that "Bavi" could move deep into Shandong, as the cited source noted. Chinese state media then warned that such amateur AI-based weather forecasts by bloggers could violate applicable law.
Huang Xiang, a researcher at the Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (NUIST), told the broadcaster that the centralized system was crucial to avoid public confusion. Under the Meteorology Law of the People's Republic of China, public weather warnings are subject to a centralized publication system. Official meteorological stations are thus the only authorized publishers of forecasts and severe weather warnings.
On Friday, there were still concerns that "Bavi" would become the largest typhoon to hit Taiwan in more than 30 years. This concern did not appear to be confirmed on Saturday. According to official figures, hundreds of thousands of people were brought to safety in China, without any major damage on the Taiwanese side being reported at the time of reporting.
Outlook: Landfall in Zhejiang expected Sunday morning
The region is meanwhile facing a severe test: While meteorological services provide the population with official warnings, dozens of unofficial AI-supported typhoon forecasts are circulating on the Chinese internet. The central question for the authorities is which of these forecasts are reliable — and which are covered by the Meteorology Law.
According to the current state of model calculations, landfall in Zhejiang is expected in the early hours of Sunday. Until then, evacuation orders, military emergency plans, and energy supplier preparations are in place across large parts of eastern China. For the coming hours, meteorologists expect "exceptionally heavy rainfall" in Zhejiang and Fujian, as well as storm surges along the coast.
Questions & Answers
Where and when is Typhoon "Bavi" expected to make landfall?
The Chinese weather service expects the typhoon to make landfall in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang early Sunday morning (local time).
How many people have been evacuated because of "Bavi"?
In Zhejiang province alone, Chinese state media reported more than 500,000 evacuees and an additional 1.7 million people affected in Wenzhou; in Taiwan, more than 14,000 residents were evacuated as a precaution from mountain regions at risk of landslides.
Why are Chinese state media warning about bloggers with AI weather forecasts?
China Media Group stated that some "weather enthusiasts" were disseminating forecasts from open-source AI models; however, under the Meteorology Law of the People's Republic of China, only official meteorological stations are permitted to issue public weather warnings.
