Residents thrust motorcycles done flooded areas earlier Hurricane Melissa hits the metropolis of Santiago de Cuba, Cuba connected Oct. 28, 2025.
Yamil Lage | AFP | Getty Images
Hurricane Melissa made landfall successful eastbound Cuba adjacent the metropolis of Chivirico aboriginal Wednesday arsenic a Category 3 tempest after pummeling Jamaica arsenic 1 of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes connected record, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
Hundreds of thousands of radical had been evacuated to shelters successful Cuba. A hurricane informing was successful effect for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo, Holguin and Las Tunas.
Early Wednesday, Melissa had sustained apical winds of 120 mph (193 kph) and was moving northeast astatine 10 mph (16 kph) according to the National Hurricane Center successful Miami. The hurricane was centered 20 miles (32 kilometers) eastbound of Chivirico and astir 60 miles (97 kilometers) west-southwest of Guantánamo, Cuba.
Melissa was forecast to transverse the land done the greeting and determination into the Bahamas aboriginal Wednesday. The continuing aggravated rainfall could origin life-threatening flooding with galore landslides, U.S. forecasters said. A hurricane ticker was successful effect for Bermuda.
Melissa struck Jamaica connected Tuesday with apical sustained winds of 185 mph (295 kph).
The tempest was expected to make a tempest surge of up to 12 feet (3.6 meters) successful the portion and driblet up to 20 inches (51 centimeters) of rainfall successful parts of eastbound Cuba.
"Numerous landslides are apt successful those areas," said Michael Brennan, manager of the U.S. National Hurricane Center successful Miami.
The hurricane could worsen Cuba's terrible economical crisis, which has already led to prolonged powerfulness blackouts, substance shortages and nutrient shortages.
"There volition beryllium a batch of enactment to do. We cognize determination volition beryllium a batch of damage," Díaz-Canel said successful a televised address, successful which helium assured that "no 1 is near down and nary resources are spared to support the lives of the population."
At the aforesaid time, helium urged the colonisation not to underestimate the powerfulness of Melissa, "the strongest ever to deed nationalist territory."
Provinces from Guantánamo — successful the acold eastbound — to Camagüey, astir successful the halfway of elongated Cuba, had already suspended classes connected Monday.
As Cuba prepared for the storm, officials successful Jamaica prepared to instrumentality retired Wednesday to measure the damage.
Extensive harm was reported successful parts of Clarendon successful confederate Jamaica and successful the southwestern parish of St. Elizabeth, which was "under water," said Desmond McKenzie, lawman president of Jamaica's Disaster Risk Management Council.
The tempest besides damaged 4 hospitals and near 1 without power, forcing officials to evacuate 75 patients, McKenzie said.
More than fractional a cardinal customers were without powerfulness arsenic of precocious Tuesday arsenic officials reported that astir of the land experienced downed trees, powerfulness lines and extended flooding.
The authorities said it hopes to reopen each of Jamaica's airports arsenic aboriginal arsenic Thursday to guarantee the speedy organisation of exigency alleviation supplies.
The tempest was already blamed for 7 deaths successful the Caribbean, including 3 successful Jamaica, 3 successful Haiti and 1 successful the Dominican Republic, wherever different idiosyncratic remains missing.
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