ORLANDO, Fla. – Recent data from the National Hurricane Center’s 2 p.m. update shows that Hurricane Melissa now has maximum sustained winds up to 175 mph as pressure continues to drop, making the storm a powerful Category 5 hurricane.
The storm’s eye early Monday was a compact 10-miles wide, surrounded by explosive cold cloud tops, a clear sign of its extreme strength.
Forecast Path
Melissa was drifting west-northwest at 3 mph, but is expected to turn north over the next 24 hours, putting Jamaica directly in the path for a Tuesday morning landfall on the island’s southern coast.
From there, the hurricane is forecast to move across Jamaica, re-emerge over water by Tuesday afternoon, and then head toward southeastern Cuba, the southeastern Bahamas and eventually near Bermuda by late Thursday.
[VIDEO BELOW: Storms bring 19 inches of rain to Central Fla.]
Forecast Intensity
Melissa may strengthen even further while it remains south of Jamaica over extremely warm waters and under low wind shear.
Small intensity swings are possible as the storm undergoes internal eyewall changes, but these minor changes don’t change the potential catastrophic destruction.
Melissa’s Impacts
Jamaica: Catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding, landslides and storm surge are likely through Tuesday. Winds will become destructive Monday evening, especially in the mountains, leading to severe infrastructure damage, power and communication outages and widespread flooding.
[VIDEO BELOW: Candace Campos’ forecast for Central Florida]
Haiti and the Dominican Republic: Heavy rain, flash flooding and landslides are expected across southwestern Haiti and southern Dominican Republic through midweek. Damage to roads, bridges and communication networks is likely, especially in Haiti. Tropical storm conditions could begin late Tuesday into Wednesday.
Eastern Cuba: Conditions will deteriorate rapidly late Tuesday and Tuesday night as Melissa approaches as a major hurricane. Expect life-threatening flooding, damaging winds and dangerous storm surge.
Southeast Bahamas & Turks and Caicos: By Wednesday, hurricane conditions, life-threatening surge and heavy rainfall are possible.