Melissa has made landfall in Cuba as an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 hurricane, after devastating Jamaica as one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes in history. Severe flooding has hit Cuba as Melissa moves over the island. For additional coverage, watch CNN.
The storm caused extensive damage to homes, hospitals and schools in southwestern Jamaica, but the full extent of the damage there is unclear with it hard to get to. Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared the country a disaster area Tuesday, For ways to help those impacted, see here.
A deadly storm: Melissa is responsible for seven deaths — three in Jamaica during storm preparations, three in Haiti and one in the Dominican Republic.
We’ve been seeing video from overnight showing heavy downpours hitting eastern Cuba as people brace themselves for Hurricane Melissa.
In video shared on social media via the Reuters news agency, torrents of water can be seen gushing down the streets of Cuba’s second-largest city, Santiago de Cuba. Residents can be seen wading through dirty rainwaters, picking up their dogs to shelter them from the deluge.
Melissa is anticipated to unload 10 to 20 inches of rain across eastern Cuba, with up to 25 inches over the mountains, CNN’s meteorologists have predicted.
Such high volumes of water over steep terrain are anticipated to trigger flash floods and landslides.
CNN
