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Nearly 900 shelters have opened around the country for residents to hole up in as Hurricane Melissa passes through, bringing rainfall totals “we’ve never heard before”. Jamaican authorities have urged residents to evacuate to one of 900 shelters set up across the island. And on Sunday night, Prime Minister Andrew Holness issued mandatory evacuation orders for Port Royal in the capital Kingston and six other areas. Storm Melissa currently has maximum sustained winds of up to 140mph (220kph) and is expected to strengthen as it heads towards Jamaica. Desmond McKenzie, minister of local government, said: “Many of these communities will not survive this flooding. “Kingston is low, extremely low… No community in Kingston is immune from flooding.” Both international airports are closed.
