Alarming video has captured the monster eye of Hurricane Melissa barreling towards Jamaica — as the planet’s strongest storm this year was on track to pummel the Caribbean island early Tuesday.
The slow-moving “catastrophic” Category 5 storm was expected to make landfall in the early hours and slice diagonally across the island — in what could be the largest on record for the nation, the US National Hurricane Center warned.
Menacing aerial footage showed the eye of the storm swirling above as the hurricane was already packing sustained winds of up to 175 mph as of late Monday.
Forecasters said the slow-moving Category 5 storm, described as “catastrophic,” was set to make landfall early Tuesday and track diagonally across the island. Josh Reiter / CIRAMelissa’s wingspan is currently larger than the length of Jamaica.
Forecasters have warned that Jamaica could be threatened with days of never-before-seen catastrophic winds and as much as 3 feet of rain as the hurricane progresses.
A life-threatening storm surge of up to 13 feet was also expected across southern Jamaica.
“It’s a catastrophic situation expected in Jamaica,” the World Meteorological Organization’s tropical cyclone specialist Anne-Claire Fontan said.
“For Jamaica, it will be the storm of the century for sure.”
Mandatory evacuations were ordered as the storm approached but the Jamaican government said it had done all it could to prepare as it warned of catastrophic damage.
Fishing boats it on the shore at Port Henderson Beach in Portmore, Jamaica, on October 27, 2025. RUDOLPH BROWN/EPA/Shutterstock
A house stands damaged by the preliminary winds of Hurricane Melissa at Hellshire Fishing Beach in Portmore, Jamaica, on Oct. 27, 2025. RUDOLPH BROWN/EPA/Shutterstock“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said in the hours before the storm was set to strike.
“The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
Follow The Post’s coverage on Hurricane Melissa
- Menacing video shows ‘monster eye’ of Hurricane Melissa — as planet’s strongest storm this year barrels towards Jamaica
- Storm chaser captures stunning eye of Hurricane Melissa before Category 5 storm clobbers Jamaica — as 3 already dead
- Melissa upgrades to Category 5 hurricane as it nears Jamaica — with catastrophic flooding expected
- Tropical Storm Melissa stationary in the Caribbean as forecasters warn it will quickly intensify
The International Federation of the Red Cross warned up to 1.5 million people in Jamaica were expected to be directly affected by the storm.
“Today will be very difficult for tens of thousands, if not millions of people in Jamaica,” IFRC’s Necephor Mghendi said.
Hurricane Melissa is the strongest recorded storm in 2025. Josh Reiter / CIRA“Roofs will be tested, floodwaters will rise, isolation will become a harsh reality for many.”
The historic storm has already been blamed for at least seven deaths in the Caribbean, including three in Jamaica, three in Haiti and one in the Dominican Republic.
After making landfall in Jamaica, the fierce storm was expected to hit Cuba later Tuesday before lashing the Bahamas by Wednesday evening.
