Melissa rapidly intensified over the weekend and is now a rare Category 5 hurricane with 160 mph winds. The National Hurricane Center expects it to make landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday morning as the strongest hurricane on record to strike the island.
The center of the hurricane is located about 130 miles south of Kingston, Jamaica and the storm is moving westward at just 3 mph.
“Do not venture out of your safe shelter,” the NHC said Monday morning. “Catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding and numerous landslides are likely today through Tuesday. Destructive winds, especially in the mountains, will begin by this evening, leading to extensive infrastructural damage, long-lasting power and communication outages, and isolated communities.”
Tropical storm conditions are already ongoing in Jamaica and hurricane conditions will arrive tonight into early Tuesday as Melissa pushes onshore.
The Jamaican government issued mandatory evacuation orders Sunday evening for several vulnerable coastal communities, including parts of Kingston, as Melissa intensifies on its approach to the Caribbean nation.
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