🔗 Share this article

Cyclone Melissa is forecast to escalate to a infrequent Category 5 storm as it shifts towards the Caribbean island, causing dangerous sudden floods and mudslides.

This weather system, which had winds of up to 195 km/h as of 0600 Greenwich Mean Time, is currently turning northwest in the Caribbean region and is expected to reach land by midweek, according to meteorological authorities.

Alerts of electricity outages and damage to infrastructure have been issued as Melissa generates up to 76cm of rainfall and coastal flooding as high as 4m above normal levels. "Seek shelter now," inhabitants have been advised.

The cyclone is the 13th hurricane in the ongoing Atlantic storm period, which typically ends in November.

Highest-Level Storm Danger

A Category 5 storm is the strongest type, with wind speeds of at least 252 km/h.

Although Melissa is set to reduce in intensity to a fourth-level hurricane before making landfall on the island, meteorologists said there was "almost no noticeable change in the total effects" upon reaching the coast, and that the hurricane will be "equally strong" when it impacts the island.

Immediate Safety Steps

With tropical storm-level winds and rain already expected long before it passes over the island's interior - including potentially the capital, Kingston - warnings state that "preparations should be rushed to completion".

"Several days of damaging winds and intense precipitation has started and will cause catastrophic and life-threatening rapid water accumulation and multiple rock slides," urged meteorological officials.

The nation's leader the official commented: "I understand that there are many Jamaicans who are worried, who are very concerned, and rightfully so: worry is natural.

"However the best way to manage nervousness and any apprehension and concern is to remain prepared."

Locals are being advised to protect their properties with sandbags and wooden boards, and to accumulate necessary supplies.

Wider Consequences

Warnings are also active for parts of Haiti including the capital, Port au Prince, the Dominican Republic and the eastern part of Cuba, where Melissa is projected to bring comparable impacts by the middle portion of the coming week.

Landslides currently triggered by the cyclone have resulted in two fatalities in the country, according to local authorities.

Future Trajectory

Melissa is predicted to pass over the island nation by midweek before passing across the Caribbean archipelago and emerging into the open ocean.

By the time it reaches Cuba, it is predicted to have diminished to a Category 3 cyclone.

Weather Connection

While it is hard to link particular meteorological occurrences to environmental shifts, experts say it is resulting in weather phenomena increasingly frequent and more extreme.

Increased sea temperatures generate greater water vapor in the environment, helping fuel the development of storms.

Ahead of the beginning of this season's Atlantic storm period, meteorological authorities projected above-normal activity, citing elevated ocean temperatures and possible more intense weather patterns around the western African continent - where tropical systems typically originate.