A man dives into the water, as Hurricane Melissa approaches, in Kingston, Jamaica, Oct. 28, 2025. REUTERS/Octavio Jones
KINGSTON – Hurricane Melissa made landfall in western Jamaica early Tuesday afternoon as a powerful Category 5 storm and the strongest ever to directly hit the Caribbean nation of 2.8 million people.
Melissa made landfall near the town of New Hope, some 62 km (39 miles) south of Montego Bay, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 mph (295 kph), the US National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory.
The most powerful level on the Saffir-Simpson scale, Category 5, requires speeds of at least 157 mph.
The slow-moving storm is forecast to remain a powerful hurricane as it crosses the mountainous island, whose highland communities are vulnerable to landslides and flooding, and heads towards Santiago de Cuba
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