Hurricane Melissa strengthens into a Category 3 storm, threatening catastrophic flooding in Jamaica and Haiti

Hurricane Melissa quickly intensified Major Category 3 hurricane It unleashed torrential rains in the northern Caribbean Sea and threatened catastrophic floods and landslides in Jamaica and southern Haiti.

US meteorologists have warned that slow-moving Melissa is expected to strengthen and become a major hurricane when she makes landfall in Jamaica early next week.

It should be near or above Cuba by midweek.

“I urge Jamaicans to take the weather threat seriously,” Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “Take all measures to protect yourself.”

Melissa’s center was about 125 miles southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 280 miles west-southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, late Saturday night.

The Hurricane Center said it had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph and was moving west at 3 mph.

Melissa was expected to dump up to 30 inches of rain on Jamaica and southern Hispaniola — Haiti and the Dominican Republic — according to the Hurricane Center.

On Saturday afternoon, the Cuban government issued a hurricane warning for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo and Holguin.

Storms slow progress

The erratic, slow-moving storm killed at least three people in Haiti and a fourth person in the Dominican Republic, where another person is still missing.

“Unfortunately for places along the projected path of this storm, the situation is increasingly dire,” Jimmy Rome, the center’s deputy director, said earlier Saturday. He said the storm will continue to move slowly for up to four days.

Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston will close at 8 p.m. local time, authorities in Jamaica said on Saturday.

It did not say whether it would close Sangster Airport in Montego Bay on the western side of the island.

More than 650 shelters have been activated in Jamaica.

Officials said warehouses across the island were well equipped and thousands of food parcels had been stored for quick distribution if needed.

River levels rise

Haitian authorities said that three people died as a result of the hurricane and five others were injured due to the collapse of a wall.

There were also reports of rising river levels, flooding, and the destruction of a bridge due to collapsed river banks in St. Susan, in the northeast of the country.

“The storm is causing a lot of anxiety about the way it is moving,” said Ronald Delis, director of Haiti’s Civil Protection Department, as local authorities organized lines to distribute food kits.

Many residents are still reluctant to leave their homes.

The storm damaged about 200 homes in the Dominican Republic and destroyed water supply systems, affecting more than half a million customers.

It also downed trees and traffic lights, caused two small landslides, and left more than two dozen communities cut off by floodwaters.

The Bahamas Weather Service said Melissa could bring tropical storm or hurricane conditions to islands in the southeastern and central Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands by early next week.

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

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted an above-normal season with between 13 and 18 named storms.