Hurricane Melissa unleashed devastation in Jamaica as the strongest storm on record ever to hit the Caribbean island nation, and roared later on Wednesday into eastern Cuba, smashing the city of Santiago and flooding rural land.
A Category 5 storm with sustained winds of 185 mph (298 kph) when it barrelled into Jamaica, Melissa had been downgraded to a still dangerous Category 3 when it hit Cuba with sustained winds of 120mph, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
“Life-threatening storm surge, flash flooding and landslides, and damaging hurricane winds are ongoing this morning,” the center said.
The historic storm blasted western Jamaica, demolishing homes, knocking down swaths of trees and washing out roadways. Authorities did not yet release details of fatalities but said they expected loss of life.
Eyewitness reports and videos on social media from Jamaica showed vehicles destroyed by flying debris, hotel doors blown off hinges and roofs scattered across neighborhoods. Video of the airport in Montego Bay showed inundated seating areas, broken glass and collapsed ceilings.
The storm was expected to weaken some as it crossed Cuba but would remain a dangerous hurricane upon reaching the Bahamas.
In eastern Cuba, around 735,000 people were evacuated from homes as the storm approached, authorities said. By mid-morning, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Cuba had already suffered extensive damage and warned residents against letting down their guard, urging them to remain sheltered.
In southwestern Jamaica, the parish of St Elizabeth was left “underwater,” an official said, with more than 500,000 residents without power.
“The reports that we have had so far would include damage to hospitals, significant damage to residential property, housing and commercial property as well, and damage to our road infrastructure,” Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said on CNN after the storm had passed.
The government had not yet received news of any confirmed deaths from the storm, but given the strength of the hurricane and the extent of the damage, “we are expecting that there would be some loss of life,” Holness said.
