[1] Despite never officially reaching typhoon strength, Bilis was responsible for $4.4 billion (2006 USD) in damage and 859 fatalities in the Philippines, Taiwan, and China.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert on the disturbance later that day as it moved northwestward.

By July 8, it had developed sufficient convection to be designated a tropical depression by the JTWC and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).

On July 10, Bilis moved into the area of responsibility of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), and was designated Tropical Storm Florita for local warnings.

After moving across northern Taiwan, Bilis made its second landfall in Fujian, China early on July 14 at the same intensity,[4] then weakened into a tropical depression over land the next day.

Storm Signal Number 2, for winds of 60–100 km/h (37–62 mph), was issued for northern Luzon, including the rest of Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, and Apayao.

[5] The provincial observatory of Fujian issued a typhoon warning for the province on July 11, well in advance of Bilis' final landfall.

[19] Several sections of the Beijing-Guangzhou railway, a main rail route in China, were blocked by flooding and landslides, causing many delays and diversions.

[15][17] Most of the damage and fatalities occurred in the village of Zixing, where local officials reported the flooding as the worst the area had seen in the past 100 years,[17] and described the death toll as "unprecedented".

[23] Following the storm, the Red Cross Society of China provided food, blankets, and water purification kits to over 100,000 Hunan residents in mass evacuation shelters.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs sent a team to Hunan to investigate the allegations, and issued a notice stating that anyone found to be covering up any damage details would be held accountable.

Also, the storm interacted with the active monsoon over the South China Sea, and the Hong Kong Observatory reported a 1-hour rainfall total of 115.1 mm (4.53 in), a new record.