Hurricane Melissa — a powerful storm that made landfall in Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane, the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale — is currently sweeping across Cuba, devastating the region and leaving dozens dead. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), evacuations, preparations, and relief efforts are ongoing as Melissa continues to impact the Caribbean.
OCHA reports that Melissa is now battering Cuba. The storm made landfall overnight near Santiago de Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane, with winds reaching 120 miles per hour. It is anticipated that the hurricane will cross the Bahamas later on Wednesday, continuing to bring winds, storm surge, and heavy rainfall across the region, including Turks and Caicos and Haiti.
Melissa made landfall in southwestern Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane on Tuesday evening (UTC), with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph. It then crossed western Jamaica and continued northeast, making a second landfall over the southeastern coast of Cuba, approximately 30 kilometers west of the capital, Santiago de Cuba.
Jamaica
On Tuesday, the storm struck Jamaica as the strongest to make landfall on the island in recorded history. Authorities declared the entire country a disaster area and reported widespread flooding, landslides, and severe damage in several parishes, including Clarendon, Manchester, St. Elizabeth, and Westmoreland.
In Jamaica, where Hurricane Melissa first made landfall, up to 1.5 million people could be affected. More than 2,300 people are currently staying in shelters, and there have been no confirmed deaths in the country, although full assessments are ongoing.
Over half a million people are without power, and blocked roads due to debris and downed power lines are affecting every region of the island. Several major hospitals and other infrastructure, including schools, homes, and businesses, have sustained significant damage. Agriculture has suffered as well.
The government of Jamaica is leading the recovery and response efforts with support from the United Nations (UN) and various UN agencies. OCHA is expected to arrive on Thursday to reinforce coordination and information management, and additional teams are on standby to conduct assessments and coordinate the response.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has prepositioned food supplies for over 180,000 people, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has provided hygiene kits and deployed portable water treatment plants, and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has moved agricultural supplies and seeds to eastern Jamaica to help farmers protect their irrigation systems.
Cuba
Meanwhile, over 735,000 people in Cuba have been evacuated to shelters and other locations due to the approaching storm. The Anticipatory Action Plan has enabled the delivery of early assistance through a $4 million allocation from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).
The World Food Programme (WFP) has transported and pre-positioned nearly 700 metric tons of food, UNICEF has delivered hygiene kits and learning materials, and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has airlifted 2.7 tons of medical supplies, including emergency health kits, generators, and water tanks, from Panama. The UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Population Fund, and OCHA are providing additional support.
Haiti
In Haiti, which has already been grappling with brutal gang violence, an economic crisis, and natural disasters, the government declared a public holiday to allow emergency teams to focus on operations.
Haitian authorities are warning of possible flooding and landslides in several departments. Early information from relief organizations indicates damage in the West Department. At least 20 people have died, including 10 children, in the commune of Petit-Goâve. Media reports indicate that at least 25 people have been killed there due to river flooding, with more reported missing. PAHO reports three additional deaths in Haiti: one in Sud-Est and two in Port-au-Prince.
Humanitarian organizations have pre-positioned key supplies, including hundreds of hygiene kits, in the Artibonite and North-West departments, as well as in Cap-Haïtien. Meanwhile, the Haitian Red Cross and UNESCO are supporting community outreach and public information campaigns.
OCHA Haiti continues to coordinate response efforts, ensuring that authorities and aid agencies work together efficiently to reach people in need and avoid duplicating response efforts, which are focusing on the departments under red and orange alerts: Grand’Anse, South, Nippes, Southeast, and West.
Other impacted countries in the Caribbean
In neighboring Dominican Republic, two people have reportedly died and nearly 1.8 million people have been affected by Hurricane Melissa.
Across the Caribbean, the UN humanitarian office is collaborating with local authorities and humanitarian organizations to share information, plan collectively, and monitor local conditions. Preventive evacuations have begun in the Bahamas, and heavy rainfall, strong winds, and storm surges are expected in Jamaica, Cuba, most of Haiti, the southern Dominican Republic, and the central and southeastern Bahamas from Wednesday until Friday.