Hurricane Melissa, which intensified to a powerful Category 5 storm early Monday — prompting warnings of intense flooding and devastation across the Caribbean, including Jamaica, Haiti and the southeastern Bahamas — is set to make landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
Melissa is expected to hit Jamaica as it reaches peak intensity. Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, warned of the looming devastation.
“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” he said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
Hurricane Melissa is the strongest storm of the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane season, Chief Global News Meteorologist Anthony Farnell said. “It reached Category 5 strength early Monday morning and continues to intensify,” he added.
As of Monday afternoon, Melissa was officially the strongest storm of the entire year. By Tuesday, its wind speeds reached 280 km/h, according to the Associated Press.
Footage captured by the U.S. Air Force on Monday from inside the hurricane’s eye showed its towering walls as it sweeps towards Jamaica.
“Unfortunately, there is almost zero chance that Melissa misses Jamaica,” said Farnell.
The NHC is urging people in Jamaica to seek shelter as catastrophic hurricane conditions approach.
Peak storm surge heights could reach three to four metres above ground level, the agency added. As of Monday morning, swirling winds extended up to 315 kilometres from the eye of the storm.
Melissa is expected to bring 38 to 76 centimetres of rain across parts of Jamaica, with up to 102 centimetres possible in some areas.
Catastrophic flash flooding and numerous landslides are also likely, along with severe infrastructure damage to major roads and highways that Farnell says could lead to weeks-long closures.
“The only bit of good news is that the latest track brings those strongest winds (250km/h+) and worst storm surge (3 to 4 metres) west, to a less populated part of Jamaica,” he added.
Wind speeds are expected to be 30 per cent higher in mountainous regions.
Jamaica’s two major airports shut down over the weekend, including Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay and Norman Manley International Airport in the capital, Kingston, where hurricane conditions could last up to 24 hours.
Roads leading to and from the Kingston airport are particularly exposed to strong winds and waves.
Jamaica’s minister of local government and community development, Desmond McKenzie, said on Sunday night that 218 people were already in some of the country’s 881 shelters, NBC News reported.
On Monday, Holness urged people to occupy the facilities, reiterating on X that they are free of charge.
Officials said warehouses across the island were well-stocked and thousands of food packages were pre-positioned for quick distribution if needed.
The lingering storm will leave little time for recovery, Jamaican authorities have warned.
“With the slow movement of this system, it doesn’t allow you to recover. It’s going to sit there, pouring water while it’s barely moving and that is a significant challenge that we have to be aware of,” Evan Thompson, principal director of the Meteorological Service of Jamaica, said.
“The pending impact of Melissa is not something as a country we should take lightly,” McKenzie said on Saturday, adding that it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that Jamaicans are protected and comply with emergency orders.
Catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding is forecast to hit Haiti and the Dominican Republic by midweek, the NHC warned. Meanwhile, Cuba is bracing for heavy rain, flooding and landslides.
The southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands are also on a high alert, with hurricane watches in place.
Haitian authorities say three people have already died as a consequence of the hurricane and another five were injured due to a collapsed wall.
The storm damaged nearly 200 homes in the Dominican Republic over the weekend, knocking out water supply systems and affecting more than half a million customers.
Farnell noted that this will be the first Category 4 or stronger storm to hit Jamaica in the modern era. “The fact that the storm will be hitting from the south makes it even more destructive,” he warned, though Jamaica’s high terrain will force the storm to weaken “significantly.”
Melissa is the 13th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had predicted an above-normal season with 13 to 18 named storms.
Global News has reached out to Global Affairs Canada for further information about Canadians in Jamaica.
Canadian citizens can contact the Emergency Watch and Response Centre for 24/7 consular assistance.
— With files from The Associated Press