Melissa’s 185-mph winds rival the most intense Atlantic storms on record. The Category 5 hurricane is threatening Jamaica with a storm surge of up to 13 feet.

Hurricane Melissa has been upgraded to a Category 5 storm, with dangerous winds, storm surge and flash flooding expected in Jamaica, forecasters said.

Hurricane Melissa has strengthened into a Category 5 storm as it draws closer to Jamaica, where forecasters say it will unleash catastrophic flooding, landslides and widespread damage

The two categories combined make up about 17 percent of all hurricanes in recorded history. Those reaching Category 5 — like Melissa — historically make up more like 4 percent of hurricanes. And fewer than half of the strongest two categories of hurricanes go on to hit land at such intensity.

This forecast track shows the most likely path of the center of the storm. It does not illustrate the full width of the storm or its impacts, and the center of the storm is likely to travel outside the cone up to 33% of the time.

Hurricane Melissa, which has developed into a Category 5 storm, moves north in the Caribbean Sea towards Jamaica and Cuba in a composite satellite image obtained by Reuters on October 27, 2025. CIRA/NOAA/Handout via REUTERS KINGSTON,