Shanghai braced for a rare double threat on Wednesday as Tropical Storm Co-May struck eastern China with powerful winds and torrential rain, while a tsunami warning was issued following a magnitude 8.8 earthquake near Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.
More than 280,000 people were evacuated from coastal areas, and over 600 flights were cancelled at Shanghai’s Pudong and Hongqiao airports. Authorities also suspended all ferry operations and enforced strict speed limits on roads and railways to minimize risk. Flights at nearby cities including Ningbo, Wenzhou, Hangzhou, and Zhoushan also faced widespread cancellations.
Co-May made landfall in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, early Wednesday with wind speeds of 83 kph. Though not as strong as a typhoon, the storm’s impact prompted swift precautions across the Yangtze River Delta.
To compound the disruption, China’s coastal cities—including Shanghai and Zhoushan—were placed under tsunami alerts following the massive offshore earthquake near Russia. Waves up to 1 metre were forecast to hit parts of the Chinese coast by evening. Meanwhile, Japan issued warnings for waves reaching up to 3 metres along its Pacific coast.
While attractions like Shanghai Disneyland and Legoland remained open, several rides and performances were suspended due to unsafe weather conditions.
Shanghai, rarely hit directly by major typhoons, hasn’t seen such coordinated warnings since Typhoon Bebinca last year, the strongest cyclone to strike the city since 1949. Now, with both a tropical storm and a tsunami looming, authorities remain on high alert to prevent disaster.
