Hurricane Melissa strikes Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 4 storm, causing widespread damage and power outages before heading towards Cuba.

KINGSTON: Hurricane Melissa churned north-east toward Cuba’s second-largest city on Tuesday as a powerful Category 4 storm.

This movement came hours after it made landfall in nearby Jamaica as the strongest-ever storm to hit the Caribbean island nation.

Melissa struck land near Jamaica’s southwestern town of New Hope, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 miles per hour.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said these winds were well above the minimum strength of a Category 5 storm, the most powerful level on the Saffir-Simpson scale.

In southwestern Jamaica, the parish of St. Elizabeth was left “underwater,” according to an official.

Over half a million residents were left without power across the island.

By 2100 GMT, Melissa had weakened to 145 miles per hour as it moved past the mountainous island.

Highland communities in Jamaica remain particularly vulnerable to landslides and flooding from the storm.

The hurricane is now forecast to curve toward Santiago de Cuba, Cuba’s second-largest city.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel stated that the country should already be feeling the storm’s main influence.

He called on citizens to heed evacuation orders in a message published in the state newspaper Granma.

The President acknowledged that there would be a lot of work to do and that the cyclone would cause significant damage.

Cuban authorities said they had evacuated about 500,000 people ahead of the storm’s arrival.

In the Bahamas, which is next in Melissa’s crosshairs, the government ordered further evacuations for people living in southern parts of the archipelago.

Nearby Haiti and the Dominican Republic have faced days of torrential downpours leading to at least four deaths, according to authorities there.

Local media reported at least three deaths in Jamaica during storm preparations.

A disaster coordinator suffered a stroke while carrying out her duties in the onset of the storm and was rushed to hospital.

Late Tuesday, many areas in Jamaica remained cut off from assistance and communication.

Jamaica had never before taken a direct hit from a Category 4 or 5 storm despite being no stranger to hurricanes.

The Jamaican government called for foreign aid as it prepared for the fallout of the strongest-ever storm to directly strike its shores.

Meteorologists at AccuWeather said Melissa was the third most intense hurricane observed in the Caribbean.

This ranking places it after Wilma in 2005 and Gilbert in 1988, which was the last major storm to make landfall in Jamaica.

A tropical cyclone specialist from the World Meteorological Organization described the situation as catastrophic.

Anne-Claire Fontan warned of storm surges up to four meters high during a press briefing.

She confirmed that for Jamaica, this would be the storm of the century for sure.

An adviser to aid group Mercy Corps in Portmore described hearing a loud explosion in the morning before everything went dark.

Colin Bogle, who was sheltering with his grandmother, heard relentless noise and saw trees violently tossed in the wind.

He noted that people are scared and that memories of Hurricane Gilbert run deep.

Bogle expressed frustration that Jamaica continues to face the worst consequences of a climate crisis it did not cause.

Scientists warn that storms are intensifying faster as a result of climate change warming ocean waters.

Many Caribbean leaders have called on wealthy, heavy-polluting nations to provide reparations in the form of aid or debt relief.

Melissa’s size and strength ballooned as it moved over unusually tepid Caribbean waters.

Forecasters warned that its slow movement could prove particularly destructive.

Food aid will be critical in the aftermath, according to Bogle, as well as tools, vehicle parts and seeds for farmers.

Like last year’s devastating Hurricane Beryl, Melissa crossed over some of Jamaica’s most productive agricultural zones.

Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said on Monday that the government had an emergency budget of 33 million dollars.

The government also has insurance and credit provisions for damage a little greater than that caused by Beryl.

Melissa made landfall in southwestern Jamaica, near the parish border between Westmoreland and St. Elizabeth.

This area was one of the worst-hit by Hurricane Beryl last year, compounding the damage.

Authorities reported severe damages to public infrastructure including hospitals.

As of 4 p.m., over half a million residents remained without power according to official reports.

Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie told a press briefing that St. Elizabeth was “underwater”.

The parish’s only public hospital lost power and reported severe damage to one of its buildings.

Several families were marooned in their homes due to the extensive flooding.

Rescue teams were struggling to reach stranded families throughout the affected areas.

McKenzie added that teams had managed to reach one group marooned with four babies.

In Portland Cottage, some 150 kilometres away from where Melissa made landfall, a retiree described the storm’s fury.

Collin Henry McDonald told Reuters that his community was seeing strong rain and winds as the storm advanced.

The 64-year-old said his concrete roof was holding steady despite the violent conditions.

He described the sound of the hurricane as being like a roaring lion that was mad and really mad.

Around 15,000 Jamaicans were in temporary shelters by late Tuesday according to McKenzie.

The government had issued mandatory evacuation orders for 28,000 people before the storm.

Many residents were reportedly reluctant to leave their homes despite the evacuation orders.

The International Federation of the Red Cross said up to 1.5 million people in Jamaica were expected to be directly affected by the storm.

The NHC advised Jamaicans to remain in shelter overnight as winds and rains continue to batter the island.

ALSO READ: Hurricane Melissa strengthens to Category 5 as it approaches Jamaica

 The Sun Malaysia