WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Hurricane Melissa is expected to make landfall over Jamaica today as a Category 5 storm, already bringing catastrophic winds, flash flooding, and storm surge.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is calling Melissa "extremely dangerous" as it sustains winds of 175 mph and moves slowly northeast at 7 mph. As of the NHC's 8 a.m. advisory, the storm is located 55 miles south of Negril, Jamaica.
The NHC says that total structural failure in Jamaica is likely, especially in areas of hills and mountains, where the winds could be up to 30% stronger.
The storm is expected to start moving faster later today, followed by a quicker northeasterward motion on Wednesday and Thursday. Hurricane Melissa will track across southeastern Cuba on Wednesday and the southeastern or central Bahamas Wednesday evening.
A Hurricane Warning is in effect for Jamaica and Cuba. Although the storm will not affect Florida, a Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the northern Bahamas, which is only 70 miles off Florida's coast.
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