Hurricane Melissa caused extreme destruction throughout the Caribbean this past week, specifically affecting Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti. Originally a tropical wave that developed into a tropical storm on October 21st and rapidly became a Category 5 hurricane on October 27th.
The storm made landfall in New Hope, Jamaica, on October 28th. The storm sustained winds of 185 mph and a central pressure of 892mb. This made Melissa the strongest storm of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season and is tied with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane for the most intense landfalling hurricane in the Atlantic.
Due to the slow movement of the hurricane over warm waters upped the intensity which resulted in unprecedented rainfall and severe infrastructure damage. The heavy rainfall contributed to the flashfloods and landslides.
When the storm hit Cuba on Wednesday the 29th it was reduced to a category 3 Hurricane. The following day it was weakened when it moved through the Bahamas. Hurricane Melissa has now been weakened to a very low force after moving northeast of Bermuda and hit as a category 2 hurricane.
The catastrophic flooding and landslides caused by the category 5 hurricane led to at least 67 confirmed deaths as of November 3rd, 2025. The storms aftermath has affected 1.5 million people in Jamaica according to the Red Cross. 490,000 are left without power and 521 shelters are open for those affected.
Many of the Jamaicans affected are in desperate need of basic necessities like food, water, and toiletries. The Social Security Minister Pearnel Charles Jr. was among several emergency responders who were delivering ready-to-eat meals, water, tarpaulins, blankets, medicine, and other essentials.
In Cuba and Haiti, it’s no different but their challengers are exacerbated by their political and economic crisis. In Southern Haiti flooding has been the cause of 31 deaths in the country. In Cuba the evacuation of 735,000 people led to no known deaths, but Melissa’s rampage as made it harder to feed that already struggling Cubans.
In the midst of the devastation local governments are focusing on getting help to those who need it and beginning the process of rebuilding the communities affected.
