Copyright news18
Hurricane Melissa, already a major Category 4 storm, would likely intensify into a top-level Category 5 storm, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Monday. Hurricane Melissa is gathering steam as it is set to make landfall in Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean on Sunday. Melissa was packing maximum winds of about 145 miles (230 kilometers) per hour but continued to move at a slow pace. This has raised concerns because if Melissa does not gather pace it means that areas in its path could see punishing conditions for far longer than a hurricane that passes by more quickly, as per the US NHC. Melissa is currently moving at just five miles an hour. Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean felt the intensity of Melissa and forecasters predicted catastrophic flooding and urged residents to seek shelter immediately, with evacuations in some areas. Jamaica was expected to see deteriorating conditions from Melissa through Sunday, with landfall not expected until late Monday or early Tuesday. “Seek shelter now,” the NHC advised residents. The natural calamity killed four people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic this week. The storm’s outer bands brought heavy rains and landslides. Up to 40 inches (about a meter) of rainfall could hit parts of Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, sparking flash flooding and more landslides. “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 in a webcast briefing. “You need to just be wherever you’re going to be and be ready to ride this out for several days,” Rhome said. “Conditions will deteriorate really, really rapidly here in the next few hours. Don’t be out and about after sunset.” 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 neighboring Haiti, the civil protection agency reported the deaths of three people caused by storm conditions. Jamaica was expected to see deteriorating conditions from Melissa through Sunday, with landfall not expected until late Monday or early Tuesday. At 0300 GMT Monday, the hurricane was located about 125 miles south-southwest of Kingston and 310 miles south-southwest of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. After passing over Jamaica, the storm was forecast to head north and cross over eastern Cuba on Tuesday night, while continuing to bring rains and heavy winds to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic’s emergency operations center has placed nine of 31 provinces on red alert due to risk of flash floods, rising rivers and landslides. Melissa is the 13th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from early June to late November. The last major hurricane to impact Jamaica was Beryl in early July 2024
