Overview
- The National Hurricane Center said Melissa regained Category 4 strength with 130 mph winds, moving north‑northeast about 110 miles southwest of Guantánamo and likely to intensify before crossing eastern Cuba early Wednesday.
- Jamaican authorities reported at least three deaths and severe damage after the Category 5 landfall, with hospitals hit and 75 patients evacuated as blocked roads and flooding slowed rescues.
- Power failures were extensive across Jamaica, with roughly 540,000 customers offline and about 15,000 people sheltering in more than 800 sites as hard‑hit St Elizabeth and Westmoreland remained difficult to reach.
- Cuba relocated more than 735,000 people from coastal and mountainous zones, with forecasts calling for 8–12 feet of storm surge, destructive waves, and 10–20 inches of rain that could trigger flash floods and landslides.
- Melissa underwent extreme rapid intensification over abnormally warm waters about 2°C above average, tying Atlantic landfall records with 185 mph winds and an 892 mb central pressure when it struck Jamaica.