Typhoon Dolphin, clearly not content with just a casual visit, prompted the evacuation of over a million people across eastern China by Sunday evening, as it made landfall with a dramatic flair for flooding and landslides.

In Wenzhou, a coastal city in Zhejiang province, officials relocated more than 900,000 people and opened over 1,500 emergency shelters. Fujian, ever the neighbor, moved 98,900 people from high-risk areas. Shanghai, not to be outdone, evacuated 215,600 people by Sunday evening - up from an initial 30,300, because apparently the first estimate was just a warm-up.

A weather station in central Shanghai recorded nearly 313mm of rain in the 24 hours to 7am Monday, the highest in over 150 years of record-keeping. Another station hit nearly 400mm. The hashtag 'Shanghai turns into the sea' trended on Weibo, with videos of flooded streets around the Wukang Mansion, a tourist hotspot now offering water views.

Zhejiang averaged 173mm of rain from Friday evening to Monday morning, reportedly outdoing previous typhoons like Lekima and Bavi. Dolphin weakened to a tropical storm by 5am Monday, but continued its northward march, threatening Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai with more deluges.

Authorities kept an orange alert, warning of flooding and landslides through Wednesday, and advised everyone to stay indoors - because who doesn't love a good indoor day during a flood? Forecasters predicted 200-400mm (7.9-15.7 inches) more rain in some areas.

Shanghai's two airports canceled over 1,300 flights, and many local trains were suspended in the financial hub. Ningbo's airport, 150km south of Shanghai, planned to resume flights from midday Monday, but warned of delays - because optimism is a virtue.

Hangzhou resumed subway services Monday morning after a Sunday pause. Meanwhile, Dolphin caused Hong Kong to swelter at a record 36.9C, with heat expected to continue into Tuesday. In Taiwan, ferries were suspended and over 180 flights canceled. Japan's Okinawa saw six injuries and power outages affecting 50,000 buildings.

The Philippines escaped a direct hit but got monsoon rains, flooding parts of Luzon, including Manila. Scientists, ever the party poopers, remind us that global warming makes such extreme weather more likely - so expect more uninvited guests like Dolphin.