There were 30 tropical cyclones in the western Pacific Ocean in 1931, including 19 typhoons, as well as one that developed in December of the previous year.
The most significant typhoon was one that struck eastern China near Shanghai in the midst of the country's worst floods on record; heavy rainfall caused levees to collapse along the Grand Canal, killing an estimated 300,000 people, including about 2,000 people overnight in the city of Gaoyou.
Damage in the Philippines totaled about 6 million pesos, spurring the Governor-general to ask residents for money for a special typhoon fund.
Steered by a ridge to the north over Japan, the system moved northwestward, brushing the northern tip of Luzon before entering the South China Sea.
Early on August 1, a station on Pratas Island recorded a minimum pressure of 988 mbar (29.2 inHg) while the typhoon passed nearby.
Late on August 1, the typhoon made landfall between Hong Kong and Macau, and weakened over land by the next day.
[5][6][7] From August 3–5, a short-lived tropical cyclone existed south of Japan; the storm moved northwestward toward the Ryukyu Islands before recurving to the northeast.
[4][5][9][10][11][12] From August 7–12, a low pressure area persisted in the South China Sea, bringing heavy rainfall to the Philippines.
Over a nine-day period, the system dropped 1,036.5 mm (40.81 in) of rainfall in Manila, which caused the worst flooding in the city in 26 years, in conjunction with above normal tides.
Three days later, the system strengthened into a typhoon and passed near Pratas, which recorded a minimum pressure of 986 mbar (29.1 inHg).
The SS President Cleveland rode out the typhoon along the Huangpu River, and recorded a pressure of 966 mbar (28.5 inHg).
There were 15 breaks in levees along the Grand Canal, inundating a 25,900 km2 (10,000 sq mi) portion of northern Jiangsu, including 80 towns, killing 300,000 people, according to contemporaneous news reports.
In Hong Kong, the typhoon produced wind gusts of 151 km/h (94 mph) and a minimum pressure of 986 mbar (29.1 inHg).
[17] A tropical cyclone formed west of Guam on September 2, embarking on a west-northwest direction.
On September 10, the typhoon moved through the southern Ryukyu Islands into the East China, where it turned to the northeast.
The storm later crossed the Korea Strait into the Sea of Japan, where it killed at least 100 fishermen after their boats capsized.
[21] Possibly related to the storm is a typhoon that struck the Patrick Henry ship to the southeast of Tokyo, which recorded a pressure of 959 mbar (28.3 inHg).
It accelerated to the northeast, moving across western Japan and Sakhalin; the once powerful typhoon was last noted on September 28.
It moved across central Japan, bringing heavy rainfall and high winds that caused loss of life.
[19] A tropical cyclone of typhoon intensity existed in the South China Sea on October 9.
A ship in San Vincente reported a minimum pressure of 975 mbar (28.8 inHg), indicating typhoon intensity.
A ship in Infanta on Luzon's west coast reported a pressure of 976 mbar (28.8 inHg), indicating typhoon intensity.
The storm continued across the South China Sea and was last noted southeast of Hainan on November 10.
On November 10, the typhoon struck eastern Luzon south of Echague, where a ship reported a pressure of 977 mbar (28.9 inHg).
On December 5, the typhoon struck the eastern Philippines near Catbalogan on Samar; a station there reported a pressure of 979 mbar (28.9 inHg).
[4][33] Another tropical cyclone, possibly related to the former one, was observed in the South China Sea on December 7 near the Paracel Islands.
It moved across the Korean Peninsula, the Sea of Japan, and eastward into the Pacific; it was last noted on December 10.