1997 Western Pacific typhoon season
Typhoon Winnie 1997
Typhoon Winnie grew into an unusually broad storm before reaching eastern China in August 1997. Flooding and coastal surges caused destruction far from its center, including in Taiwan and Shanghai.
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161 mph
Aug 12, 1997 during the tropical stage
Full archive record, including non-tropical stages if present
Along the recorded center positions
STORM HISTORY
A widening eye over the Pacific
Winnie developed near the Marshall Islands and moved northwest, becoming a typhoon on August 10. It reached peak one-minute winds of 140 kt on August 12, with a minimum central pressure of 915 hPa. After its peak, the storm developed an enormous outer eyewall, roughly 370 kilometers across.
Winnie weakened while passing north of Taiwan and reached eastern China on August 18 at Category 1 strength. Its broad circulation brought heavy rain and a large coastal surge despite the decline from its Category 5 peak. The remnants continued northeast over land.
Floods from the Philippines to China
Winnie and the seasonal monsoon brought fatal flooding to the northern Philippines. In Taiwan, some locations recorded more than 710 millimeters of rain in 13 hours. A hillside failure near Xizhi caused an apartment complex to collapse, while flooding inundated buildings around Taipei.
Chinese officials evacuated about one million coastal residents before the storm. Waves breached dikes in Zhejiang, and the Huangpu River flooded homes in Shanghai. The saved account records at least 310 deaths in mainland China and damage exceeding US$3.2 billion in 1997 currency. Floodwater isolated towns and damaged extensive areas of farmland.
Further reading
QUICK ANSWERS
Winnie in brief
What was Typhoon Winnie's highest wind speed?
161 mph, the highest one-minute sustained wind in its tropical stage, recorded on Aug 12, 1997, 12:00 AM UTC.
What category was Typhoon Winnie?
Category 5 at its peak on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale, first reaching Category 5 on Aug 12, 1997, 12:00 AM UTC. Other agencies classify storms differently.
What was Typhoon Winnie's lowest pressure?
915 mb, the minimum central pressure recorded during its tropical stage, on Aug 12, 1997, 12:00 PM UTC.
When did Typhoon Winnie occur?
The archived track runs from Aug 5, 1997, 12:00 AM UTC to Aug 25, 1997, 06:00 AM UTC, with the tropical stage from Aug 6, 1997, 06:00 AM UTC to Aug 20, 1997, 09:00 AM UTC.
Where did Typhoon Winnie form?
In the Western Pacific basin, in the 1997 season. Its first archived position is 5.6°N, 168°E on Aug 5, 1997, 12:00 AM UTC.
Did Typhoon Winnie make landfall?
The archive places its center over land at 1 recorded position; the strongest is 81 mph on Aug 18, 1997, 03:00 PM UTC. Positions are six-hourly, so this is not a landfall chronology.
METHODOLOGY
Data sources and limitations
The map and summary are generated from NOAA's IBTrACS v04r01 archive. Wind and category use US-agency records; minimum pressure is calculated during the tropical stage, with the archive's pressure source retained. Category 5 refers to the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale; local agencies may use different classifications. Coastlines use Natural Earth's 1:10m land data.
Track distance adds great-circle distances between consecutive observations, excluding gaps over 12 hours. This track has no gaps over 12 hours. The line shows the storm's center, not its size, rainfall or flood extent. Converted wind speeds are rounded to the nearest whole unit.
Archive retrieved
NOAA IBTrACS archive and Field documentation
Sources & methodology