Netizens Go Crazy Over Typhoon Bavi; Wild Claims Prompt a Witty Response from Tsai Ing-wen

Typhoon Bavi bypassed Taiwan, and Tsai Ing-wen reminded the public to stay prepared for the storm. (Screenshot)

[People News] At the last moment, as Typhoon Bavi approached Taiwan, it suddenly veered to the right, bypassed Taiwan, headed directly toward China's eastern coast, and made landfall along the coast of Zhejiang Province late on the night of July 11. A Chinese internet user posted online claiming that Bavi's "sudden northward turn" was highly suspicious, alleging that the United States had used a "weather weapon" in an attempt to cause massive casualties in China. This completely unfounded claim sparked widespread discussion among Taiwanese netizens.

Taiwan's Central Weather Administration officially lifted the land warning for Typhoon Bavi on July 12, marking the end of the storm's impact on Taiwan.

However, late on July 11, Bavi made a direct landfall along the coast of Yuhuan City in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, with maximum sustained winds near its center reaching Force 13 (approximately 40 meters per second). It subsequently swept through areas including Yueqing in Wenzhou.

Strong winds and torrential rain caused severe landslides, road collapses, telecommunications base station outages, and agricultural losses. According to the latest disaster statistics and reports released by Chinese authorities, there have so far been no reports of deaths, injuries, or missing persons.

Chinese state media reported that before Bavi made landfall, authorities in Zhejiang evacuated more than 2.2 million people. The typhoon's violent winds and heavy rain caused extensive destruction across coastal and mountainous areas of Zhejiang, including landslides, collapsed roads, flooded streets, communication outages, and agricultural damage, leaving disaster-stricken areas in ruins.

When Bavi came ashore, fierce winds uprooted roadside trees. In Yueqing City alone, more than 1,300 roadside trees were blown down, blocking roads. Streets in Wenzhou and several other coastal cities were extensively flooded with water and mud, while seawater and rainwater inundated storefronts and low-lying homes, causing heavy property losses for local residents.

Heavy rainfall caused the water levels of major rivers, including the Nanxi River, to rise rapidly within a short period, placing enormous pressure on flood control efforts along their banks. In the mountainous areas of Yongjia County, Wenzhou, torrential rain triggered a landslide with an estimated total volume of 3,000 cubic meters.

Typhoon Bavi was originally forecast to head directly toward Taiwan. (Screenshot from Sanli News video)

As Typhoon Bavi approached Taiwan, it suddenly turned to the right and headed directly toward Zhejiang Province on the Chinese mainland. (Video)

According to Taiwanese media reports, a Chinese internet user posted that Bavi's path was "very suspicious," even questioning whether the United States had manipulated the storm using a weather weapon. The bizarre post left many Taiwanese netizens astonished.

The Chinese user's post, later shared on Threads, stated that "Typhoon Bavi is really suspicious." According to the post, the storm had originally been expected to make landfall near Yilan, Taiwan, but instead turned north while very close to Taiwan's east coast and struck Zhejiang head-on. The user questioned, "How could it be such a coincidence? Is it really impossible that a weather weapon was involved during the day it stalled? It feels like the United States was behind it."

The post received more than 5,000 likes and attracted over 6,000 comments on Chinese social media. However, judging from the responses, many Chinese netizens did not agree with the baseless claim. They mocked the author with comments such as, "Who's your attending physician?", "If the U.S. could control typhoons, other countries wouldn't even need to try anymore," and "You and my dad would get along well. My cat has been eating more lately, and he also suspect the Americans are secretly behind it."

Taiwanese netizens also joined in the jokes, commenting, "Doesn't he know about Tsai Ing-wen's secret weather controller?", "They insist America is behind China technologically, yet also believe America has weather weapons," "What do you mean America did it? Don't be silly—it was Taiwan! Taiwan was the one manipulating it," and "He found us out. Actually, the weather weapon belongs to Taiwan, not America. Tsai Ing-wen mastered it years ago—that's why no typhoon made landfall for so many years."

Other Taiwanese users joked, "The remote control is with Lai Ching-te now," "That's right—we have a weather weapon. Better not mess with Taiwan," "People in China don't understand. The typhoon remote was clearly handed over from Tsai to William (William is Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's English name), not to America," and "After this practical test, I think William has finally earned his certification to operate it."

The report noted that during former President Tsai Ing-wen's administration, Taiwan experienced the rare record of more than 1,400 consecutive days without a typhoon making landfall. As a result, many Taiwanese netizens jokingly claimed that she possessed a "typhoon remote control," and after she left office, the "remote" was supposedly handed over to President Lai Ching-te.

To many netizens' surprise, Tsai Ing-wen herself noticed the discussion. She posted a message urging everyone to prepare for the typhoon in advance and thanked firefighters, police officers, medical personnel, the armed forces, Taipower employees, and central and local disaster prevention teams for their efforts. She wrote: "Every time a typhoon approaches, many people stand on the front lines to protect everyone's safety. I hope everyone prepares well and also checks in on family members, seniors, and neighbors so we can all get through this storm safely. Wishing everyone peace and safety."

Tsai also humorously referenced the "typhoon remote control" in her post. She wrote: "If such a thing really existed, I would hope it had only one button—to make typhoons turn away, so everyone stays safe."

Tsai Ing-wen's down-to-earth style generated widespread praise online, prompting even more humorous comments from Taiwanese netizens. Some joked, "Tsai is like Taiwan's version of Mazu—during her eight years in office, the weather was favorable and no typhoons hit Taiwan," "Bavi is more determined to eliminate the Chinese Communist Party than the Kuomintang," "China claims everything belongs to it, so I guess typhoons do too," "China may be able to block Taiwan's budget, but it can't block typhoons that Taiwan doesn't block," and "At moments like this, Taiwan suddenly becomes independent again. The KMT and CCP really are one family—they take credit for the good things and ignore the bad."

Other Taiwanese netizens also joked about dealing with the Chinese Communist Party, saying, "The United States has a nuclear launch briefcase, while Taiwan has a climate remote control."

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