Jamaica on alert as Hurricane Melissa intensifies
Hurricane Melissa has rapidly strengthened into a Category 5 storm, posing a deadly threat to Jamaica with torrential rains as residents rush to find shelter from what could become the island’s most severe storm on record.
Melissa has already been blamed for at least four deaths in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and was set to unleash torrential rains on parts of Jamaica in a direct hit on the Caribbean island, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
Part of the punch stems from Melissa's worryingly slow pace: it's lumbering along slower than most people walk, at just three miles per hour or less.
So areas in its path could endure punishing conditions for far longer than a hurricane that passes by more quickly.
Melissa is packing maximum winds nearing 165 miles (270 kilometres) per hour, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in its latest update.
Up to 40 inches (about a meter) of rainfall were forecast, with deluges expected to bring flash flooding and landslides to Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
"This extreme rainfall potential, owing to the slow motion, is going to create a catastrophic event here for Jamaica," NHC Deputy Director Jamie Rhome said on Monday.
Storm surge was likely along Jamaica's southern coast, with waters potentially rising some 13 feet with a likelihood of "large and destructive waves."
Experts warned it could be the strongest storm to make landfall in Jamaica's recorded history.
NHC Director Michael Brennan said Jamaicans should prepare to shelter in place well through Tuesday.
In the farming community of Flagaman in St. Elizabeth, some residents hunkered down in a bar.
Owner Enrico Coke said he opened his place for fear that his neighbours had nowhere to go: "I'm concerned about farmers, the fishermen will be suffering after this."
"We'll need help as soon as possible, especially water for the people."
A 79-year-old man was found dead in the Dominican Republic after being swept away in a stream, officials there said Saturday. A 13-year-old boy was missing.
In neighbouring Haiti, the civil protection agency reported the deaths of three people caused by storm conditions.
"You feel powerless, unable to do anything, just run away and leave everything behind," Angelita Francisco, a 66-year-old homemaker who fled her neighbourhood in the Dominican Republic, told AFP through tears.
Floodwater had inundated her house, causing her refrigerator to float away as trash bobbed around the home.
🚨Hurricane Melissa: deadly category 5 storm threatens Jamaica
— News.Az (@news_az) October 27, 2025
Hurricane Melissa has rapidly strengthened into a Category 5 storm, posing a severe threat to Jamaica with torrential rains, flash floods, and storm surges. The storm, moving at a slow pace of just three miles per… pic.twitter.com/3BAllW5qpE
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