Typhoon Chanthu to Hit China After Impacting Philippines and Taiwan

After Typhoon Chanthu impacted portions of the Philippines and Taiwan the previous week and this weekend respectively, it has a new region it's targeting for the upcoming week. Portions of mainland China are the targeted area to experience the Chanthu's wrath this week, AccuWeather forecasters said.

Typhoon Chanthu

Last week, Chanthu exploded into being in the basin and it went through a rapid increase in strength, making it become the season's only second super typhoon, as per the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC). While Chanthu no longer holds the title of super typhoon after it had an interaction with Taiwan, meteorologists say this storm is still packing a severe punch.

Chanthu eye was situated in the East China Sea, to the northeast of Taiwan as of Monday morning, local time. As per the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), the typhoon was tracking to the north-northeast at 30 km/h (17 mph) speed.

10-minute average sustained winds of Chanthu were 138 km/h (86 mph), which means it was comparable to a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

Jason Nicholls, an AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist said: "Chanthu will lose wind intensity as it continues to push northward and will reach the vicinity of Shanghai later Monday, local time, and will stall near or just east of Shanghai into Wednesday."

Torrential Rainfall

Torrential rainfall will be the most remarkable impact on mainland China from Chanthu, AccuWeather forecasters said.

Nicholls cautioned: "Heavy rain and flooding will be a concern across Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces from [Monday] into Thursday."

Extensive rainfall with 1-2 inches (25-50 mm) as its amount is anticipated across portions of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Higher rainfall with 200-300 mm (8-12 inches) as its amounts could possibly take place along eastern coastal regions nearest to where the typhoon churns.

Places nearest to the coast could witness rainfall amounts of 12-18 inches, with an AccuWeather Local StormMax^TM of 30 inches (760 mm).

Shanghai, a region with more than 26 million people, is predicted to witness extensive rainfall amounts of 200-300 mm (8-12 inches) from the typhoon from Monday through Thursday. But, AccuWeather forecasters caution that if a band of heavy rain is able to reach the area, rainfall totals could be more than these amounts, maybe greatly.

Typhoon Emergency Warning

Rainfall having this magnitude can prompt significant issues for the biggest city in China. And this city is one of the busiest shipping hubs in the world.

Any hold ups in operations due to the storm may affect not just the Chinese economy, but the global economy as a whole may feel this delay for a time.

Even before the storm got closer to the province of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Typhoon Chanthu already caused some disturbance for travel and recreation.

Portions of China have elevated typhoon emergency warning to Level 1, while Zhejiang's ports in China, are planning on suspending the loading and unloading of empty containers because of Chanthu.

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