Melissa strengthens, threatening catastrophic impact on Jamaica

AFP/APP

Jamaica: Hurricane Melissa continued to cut a deadly path through the Caribbean on Sunday, intensifying into a powerful Category 4 storm as it crawled at a dangerous pace toward Jamaica and the island of Hispaniola.

Melissa has already claimed three lives in Haiti this week, where its outer bands unleashed heavy rains and landslides in several impoverished regions. In the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, officials reported that a 79-year-old man was found dead after being swept away by floodwaters, while a 13-year-old boy remained missing.

“You feel powerless, unable to do anything — just run away and leave everything behind,” said 66-year-old homemaker Angelita Francisco, who fled her flooded neighborhood in the Dominican Republic. “Water filled my house, my refrigerator floated away, and trash was everywhere.”

According to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC), Melissa strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane on Sunday, packing maximum sustained winds of around 140 miles (225 kilometers) per hour while moving westward at just 5 mph (8 km/h).

Read More: https://thepenpk.com/melissas-fury-batters-caribbean-jamaica-on-high-alert/

The NHC warned of “life-threatening and catastrophic” flooding and landslides across parts of Jamaica and southern Hispaniola, cautioning that the storm could continue to intensify before making landfall. “Melissa is expected to be a major hurricane when it makes landfall in Jamaica late Monday night or early Tuesday morning, and in southeastern Cuba later on Tuesday,” the advisory said.

As of Sunday, Melissa was located about 120 miles (190 kilometers) southeast of Jamaica’s capital, Kingston, and 280 miles (450 kilometers) southwest of Guantanamo, Cuba.

The Dominican Republic’s emergency operations center placed nine of its 31 provinces on red alert amid threats of flash floods, rising rivers, and landslides. The NHC forecasted that Melissa could dump 15 to 30 inches (38 to 76 cm) of rain over southern Hispaniola and Jamaica, with isolated areas possibly receiving up to 40 inches.

Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness urged citizens in flood-prone zones to remain vigilant and prepare for evacuation. “If you live in an area that was flooded before, expect that it will flood again,” he warned on Friday.

In preparation for the storm, Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston announced its closure on Saturday evening, urging the public to avoid unnecessary travel. The Jamaica Information Service also confirmed that all seaports had been shut down.

Melissa is the 13th named storm of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from early June to late November. The last major hurricane to strike Jamaica was Beryl in early July 2024 — an unusually strong storm for that time of year that left at least four people dead and caused widespread damage across the island.