Tropical Storm Zitan is slowly turning back toward southern China after spending days wandering over the Beibu Gulf, raising the prospect of another burst of torrential rain across areas of Guangxi already struggling with severe flooding.
At 10:00 local time on Tuesday, August 25, Zitan was over the Beibu Gulf about 65 km (40 miles) west-northwest of Dongfang, Hainan. Maximum winds near the center were around 20 m/s (72 km/h; 45 mph), according to Chinese meteorological authorities.
The storm was moving east-northeast at only 5 to 10 km/h (3 to 6 mph) and was forecast to make landfall between southeastern Guangxi and the western side of Guangdong’s Leizhou Peninsula from Tuesday night into Wednesday.
Its slow movement has already proved exceptionally important.
More than 700 mm of rain falls, Zitan stalls
Instead of quickly crossing the region, Zitan spent several days looping and drifting over the Beibu Gulf.
From 08:00 on August 21 to 08:00 on August 24, southwestern and coastal Guangxi experienced widespread heavy to torrential rainfall. Nanping Yao Township in Shangsi County recorded 724.7 mm (28.5 inches), while Zhilang Township in Ningming County received 618.2 mm (24.3 inches).
Single-story buildings have been submerged in multiple areas of Chongzuo, Guangxi.
— sustainme.in® (@sustainme_in) August 24, 2026
Affected by Typhoon "Trami," various locations—including Chongzuo and Fangchenggang—were battered by heavy to torrential, and even extreme, rainfall between 8:00 a.m.
on August 22 and 8:00 a.m.… pic.twitter.com/ADp17NROTW
More than 30 townships across Fangchenggang, Chongzuo, Nanning and Qinzhou accumulated over 250 mm (9.8 inches).
The unusual track developed because steering currents around Zitan became extremely weak.
A belt of subtropical high pressure to the north, another tropical disturbance to the east and monsoonal circulation to the south competed to steer the cyclone. With no atmospheric system exerting enough influence to push it decisively away, Zitan remained trapped over roughly the same region.
That allowed moisture-rich rain bands to repeatedly affect southern Guangxi.
Rivers surge across the Guangxi autonomous region
The rainfall has now translated into a major hydrological emergency.
Between 08:00 Monday and 08:00 Tuesday, 14 rivers at 20 monitoring stations across Guangxi exceeded their official warning levels. Floodwaters were measured between 0.37 and 7.69 metres (1.2 to 25.2 feet) above warning thresholds.
At 08:00 Tuesday, 11 rivers at 15 stations were still above warning level.
The Ming River at Ningming reached 123.68 metres, 7.68 metres (25.2 feet) above its warning level. The Zuo River at Longzhou stood 7.25 metres (23.8 feet) above warning level, while the same river at Chongzuo was also 7.25 metres above its threshold.
Flooding in Longzhou has inundated streets, homes and businesses. In some neighborhoods, water reached around 1.2 metres (3.9 feet) deep.
Authorities reported that 15,535 people had been relocated in Longzhou alone, with emergency teams using boats to reach flooded neighborhoods.
Hundreds of military personnel and militia members have also been deployed around Chongzuo and Ningming to reinforce riverbanks, move residents and respond to communities cut off by floodwater.
Flooding is spreading farther downstream through the Pearl River basin.
The Yujiang River officially entered its second numbered flood event of 2026 after water levels rose rapidly following heavy rain across the basin.
At Nanning, the river stood at 74.04 metres Tuesday morning, 1.04 metres (3.4 feet) above warning level. Hydrological authorities forecast the river could rise to around 75 metres, approximately 2 metres (6.6 feet) above the warning threshold.
The situation is being compounded by water arriving from upstream areas as well as rainfall falling directly across Guangxi.
Another round of torrential rain is approaching
Zitan’s return toward land means the flooding emergency could intensify again.
As the tropical storm approaches the coast, rainfall is expected to increase across coastal and southeastern Guangxi. Localized totals above 400 mm (15.7 inches) remain possible through the next phase of the event, while hourly rainfall rates could exceed 80 mm (3.1 inches).
Strong winds will accompany the rain. Across the Beibu Gulf, sustained winds could reach force 9 to 10, with gusts reaching force 11 to 13 near the strongest part of the circulation.
The greatest danger, however, may come from water rather than wind.
Catchments are already saturated, rivers are running far above warning levels and additional rainfall will drain rapidly into waterways that have little capacity left.
Even after Zitan eventually moves inland and weakens, runoff moving through the Zuo and Yujiang river systems could keep flood levels dangerously high.
For Guangxi, the cyclone’s eventual landfall will therefore not mark the end of the emergency. After several days of extraordinary rainfall, the region now faces a prolonged battle with the water Zitan has left behind.
