Hurricane Melissa could be Jamaica

Kingston, Jamaica — Hurricane Melissa strengthened further as its eyewall approached landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday. He Fearsome category 5 storm – the strongest to hit the island since records began 174 years ago – has sustained winds of 185 mph, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

Landslides, downed trees and numerous power outages are already being reported, and officials warn that assessing the damage will be slow.

“For Jamaica, it will certainly be the storm of the century,” said Anne-Claire Fontan, a tropical cyclone specialist at the World Meteorological Organization. He told reporters in Geneva that he expects catastrophic damage to the island, according to the Reuters news service.

Melissa could affect 1.5 million people in Jamaica, said Necephor Mghendi, an official at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva, warning there will be a “massive impact,” French news agency News reported.

The storm was It is expected to make landfall on Tuesday. and will cut diagonally across the island, entering near St. Elizabeth Parish in the south and exiting around St. Ann Parish in the north, forecasters said. Melissa is likely to pass over southeastern Cuba on Wednesday morning as an extremely dangerous major hurricane and then reach the southeastern or central Bahamas later Wednesday, still as a hurricane.

Hours before the storm, the government said it had done everything it could to prepare, as it also warned of catastrophic damage.

“There is no infrastructure in the region that can support a category 5,” said Prime Minister Andrew Holness. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That is the challenge.”

Melissa is forecast to bring 15 to 30 inches of rain to areas of Jamaica and 6 to 12 inches south of Hispaniola (the island divided into Haiti and the Dominican Republic) through Wednesday, with a total of 40 inches possible in some places. “Catastrophic flash flooding and numerous landslides are likely,” the hurricane center warned.

“We will get through this together,” said Evan Thompson, senior director of Jamaica’s meteorological service.

For eastern Cuba, rainfall totals could reach 10 to 20 inches, with up to 25 inches in some locations from Monday through Wednesday, which could result in “potentially catastrophic and life-threatening flash floods with numerous landslides,” the center added.

And rain totals of 5 to 10 inches are expected today through Wednesday in the southeastern Bahamas, causing areas of flash flooding.

A life-threatening storm surge of up to 13 feet is expected across southern Jamaica, and officials are concerned about the impact on some hospitals along the coast.

Health Minister Christopher Tufton said some patients were moved from the ground floor to the second floor “and we hope that will be sufficient for any surge that occurs.”

The storm has already been blamed for seven deaths in the Caribbean, including three in Jamaica, three in Haiti and one in the Dominican Republic, where another person was missing.

Colin Bogle, a Mercy Corps advisor based near Kingston, said most families are sheltering in their homes despite the government ordering evacuations in flood-prone communities.

“Many have never experienced anything like this before and the uncertainty is terrifying,” he said. “There is a deep fear of losing homes and livelihoods, being injured and being displaced.”

Matthew Samuda, Jamaica’s water and environment minister, said he had more than 50 generators available to install after the storm, but warned people to reserve clean water and use it sparingly.

“Every drop will count,” he said.

A hurricane warning was in effect for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantánamo and Holguín, while a tropical storm warning was in effect for Las Tunas. Up to 20 inches of rain was forecast for parts of Cuba, along with significant storm surge along the coast.

Cuban authorities said Monday they were evacuating more than 600,000 people from the region, including Santiago, the island’s second-largest city.

Melissa has also flooded the southern regions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, with a tropical storm warning still in effect for Haiti.

A hurricane warning was in effect for the southeastern and central Bahamas, and a tropical storm warning was in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The US State Department on Monday issued natural disaster travel alerts for Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti and the Bahamas, urging US citizens to consider leaving while flights were still available, or to be prepared to shelter in place.

And News themezone confirmed that a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration hurricane hunter plane was forced to abort its mission Monday when it experienced “severe turbulence” in the southwest wall of the storm’s eye.