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Hurricane Melissa Sweeps Into Bahamas as Regional Death Toll Tops 30

Evacuations across six Bahamian islands continue as U.S. rescue teams deploy after Jamaica’s devastation.

Overview

  • Now a Category 1 system with sustained winds near 150 km/h, the storm is bringing dangerous surge and flooding to the Bahamas and is forecast to track toward Bermuda.
  • Bahamas officials ordered evacuations for six islands and airlifted about 1,500 people before flights were halted, with Prime Minister Philip Davis pledging recovery.
  • In Haiti, officials report at least 24 deaths, roughly 20 in Petit Goâve, with at least 18 people missing and about half of the victims children.
  • Jamaica counts at least nine deaths, mass power outages affecting roughly 77% of the island, and damage to hospitals and bridges, while Cuba reports severe flooding and crop losses after evacuating more than 735,000 people with no deaths confirmed.
  • The United States announced support and deployed disaster-relief, search-and-rescue, and assessment teams, coordinating with the United Nations, NGOs, and regional governments.