Melissa is already a category 3 hurricane: this is its trajectory

KINGSTON, Jamaica.— Melissa strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane on Saturday night, threatening to cause catastrophic floods in the northern Caribbean.

The forecasts indicate torrential rains for Jamaica and the southern regions of Haiti and Dominican Republic until Monday.

Melissa’s center was located Saturday night about 200 kilometers (125 miles) south-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 455 kilometers (280 miles) west-southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It had maximum sustained winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) and was moving west at 6 km/h (3 mph), according to the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC by its initials in English, based in Miami.

Night fell in Jamaica, with the news that
Hurricane Melissa already has winds of 100 mph/150 kmh, a category 2.
Here are several scenes of the capital Kingston, prior to the deterioration of weather conditions. Storm-force external winds are… pic.twitter.com/ZNnqOoGPNB

— CycloforumsPR (@CycloforumsPR) October 25, 2025

It is planned that Melissa gets closer to Jamaica during the weekend. According to the forecasts, could reach category 4 for Tuesday.

They are expected floods and landslides and up to 89 centimeters (35 inches) of catastrophic rainfall for the Tiburon Peninsula, in southwestern Haiti, according to the center.

The Cuban government issued a hurricane warning on Saturday afternoon for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantánamo and Holguín.

Melissa continues with slow progress

The erratic meteor has claimed the lives of at least three people in Haiti and of one more in the Dominican Republic, where also There is a missing person.

“Unfortunately, for locations along the projected path of this storm, the situation is becoming more serious,” said NHC Deputy Director Jamie Rhome. He said the storm will continue to move slowly for up to four days.

A was issued Hurricane warning for Jamaica and a hurricane warning was maintained for the southwestern peninsula of Haiti.

Melissa’s center is expected to approach or pass over Jamaica early next week, forecasters said. Melissa could reach category 4 early Monday, according to American meteorologists.

KINGSTON AWAITS: Scenes from the capital of Jamaica show a city calmly humming along as it awaits the wrath of Hurricane Melissa. pic.twitter.com/arNW2GlvzY

— FOX Weather (@foxweather) October 25, 2025

The forecast indicates that the meteor could hit eastern Cuba in the early hours of Wednesday, where it will dump up to 30 centimeters (12 inches) of rain in some areas.

Jamaican authorities said Saturday that Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport will close at 8 p.m. There was no mention of whether Sangster Airport in Montego Bay would also suspend operations.

More than 650 shelters have been set up in Jamaica. Officials said the island’s warehouses were well stocked and thousands of food packages have been prepared for rapid distribution if necessary.

Mortal balance in Melissa’s step

Las haitian authorities iThey reported that three people died as a result of the hurricane and five others were injured due to the fall of a wall. Rising rivers, flooding and a destroyed bridge were also reported due to the overflowing of the banks in Sainte-Suzannein the northeast of the country.

“The storm is causing a lot of concern because of the way it is moving,” said Ronald Délice, Haiti’s departmental director of civil protection, as local authorities organized lines to distribute food kits. Many residents are still reluctant to leave their homes.

Melissa has caused damage to almost 200 homes in the Dominican Republic and water supply cuts that affected more than half a million customers. It also downed trees and traffic lights, caused a pair of small mudslides and left more than two dozen communities isolated by flooding.

He Bahamas Department of Meteorology warned that Melissa could cause tropical storm or hurricane conditions in the southeastern and central islands of the country, as well as in Turks and Caicos early next week.

Melissa is the 13th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30.

The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) had predicted a season with more activity than usual, with between 13 and 18 named storms.

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