Hurricane Melissa makes landfall in Cuba, leaves trail of destruction in Jamaica

“Extremely dangerous hurricane Melissa makes landfall on southern coast of eastern Cuba,” said the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

It also said that the hurricane hit Santiago de Cuba with maximum sustained winds of around 120 miles (195 kilometers) per hour even after it weakened to a category 3 storm.

In an advisory update on X (formerly Twitter), the National National Hurricane Center wrote, “Melissa Bringing Damaging Winds, Flooding Rains, and Dangerous Storm Surge as it Moves Over Eastern Cuba.”

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Ahead of the hurricane, some 735,000 people were evacuated from their homes in Cuba, said authorities. A day before, Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel also warned that the hurricane is expected to cause “significant damage” while urging people to follow evacuation orders.

“It will be a very difficult night for all of Cuba, but we will recover,” he said in a post on X.

Hurricane Melissa’s impact on Jamaica

Hurricane Melissa hit Jamaica as a Category 5 storm and was the strongest one ever recorded to have hit the nation, leaving a trail of destruction behind.

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After the hurricane had passed, Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said said that even though their country was ravaged by it, they will rebuild and “will do so even better than before”.

“Tonight I encourage Jamaicans to be hopeful. I know many, especially those in the worst affected parishes, are feeling disheartened. Your homes may have been damaged or destroyed and your communities and towns no longer look the same. I know your pain and I feel your loss. We are mobilizing quickly to start the relief and recovery efforts and we will be there with you every step of the way,” he wrote in a post on X.

While speaking to CNN, Holness said, “The reports that we have had so far would include damage to hospitals, significant damage to residential property, housing and commercial property as well, and damage to our road infrastructure.”

So far, no deaths have officially been confirmed in Jamaica due to the hurricane, however, the Prime Minister said that they are expecting some loss of life due to the intensity of the storm and how much damage it caused.

(With inputs from AFP, Reuters)