Summary of the day so far
The death toll from Hurricane Melissa has continued to rise as the storm left a trail of destruction across the Caribbean. If you’re just joining us now, here are some of the key moments of the day so far:
Dozens of people have died in Haiti after Melissa’s rains swelled river banks, according to reports. At least 25 people have been killed, according to latest updates.
In Jamaica, authorities confirmed four bodies had been recovered on Wednesday. Two people were found dead in the Black River area, the other two in the Gallon Beach district. Melissa slammed into Jamaica as a record-breaking and destructive category 5 storm with sustained winds of 185 mph before being downgraded to a category 3 when it hit Cuba with winds of 120 mph, according to the US National Hurricane Center.
Hurricane Melissa was downgraded to a category one storm late on Wednesday, with maximum wind speeds of 90mph before it hits the south east or central Bahamas.
Disaster Assistance Response Team personnel from across the US were on their way to Jamaica, the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic, where they will also attend to issues in neighbouring Haiti, three US state department officials have told the Associated Press. They were expected to arrive in the next 24-48 hours.
Jamaican officials said buildings on the island had suffered structural damage, roads were still impassable and power outages continued to be widespread. Airports were set to reopen on Thursday for emergency relief flights after damage there was said to be superficial.
At least 241 communities remained isolated and without communications following the storm’s passage across Santiago province, according to preliminary local media reports, affecting as many as 140,000 residents.
Across eastern Cuba, authorities evacuated around 735,000 people as the storm approached. Most remained in emergency centers. Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel said the country had suffered extensive damage and warned residents against letting down their guard as rains continued to lash the region.
Key events
Rainfall in Cuba subsiding, but life-threatening risks remain
Rainfall in eastern Cuba has subsided, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
The centre said additional scattered showers are forecast through this evening, forecasting “additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches.”
With storm total rainfall of 10 to 20 inches, possibly up to 25 inches over Cuba’s mountainous terrain, the risks are still high. The NHC said:
The ongoing life-threatening and potentially catastrophic flash flooding and landslides will likely persist into the evening.
Hurricane warning for Bermuda
The National Hurricane Center’s (NHC) 8pm bulletin also issued an official hurricane warning for Bermuda and said:
Hurricane conditions are now expected on Bermuda late Thursday and Thursday night with tropical storm conditions expected earlier on Thursday.
Heavy rain may begin to affect Bermuda on Thursday or Thursday night.
The NHC said preparations in Bermuda should be completed before “anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds” that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous.
“Hurricane conditions” in the Bahamas, NHC says
Hurricane Melissa is producing “damaging winds, flooding rains and a dangerous storm surge in the Bahamas,” according to the latest 8pm ET public advisory from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
It warned residents in the Bahamas to remain sheltered as “hurricane conditions” sweep through the southeastern and central regions, which is forecast to continue through the evening.
The NHC update said:
The core of Melissa is expected to continue to move across the southeastern or central Bahamas this evening.
Maximum sustained winds are near 90 mph (150 km/h) with higher gusts. Some restrengthening is forecast tonight into tomorrow with weakening beginning thereafter.
Over the southeast Bahamas, storm total rainfall of 5 to 10 inches are expected through Thursday morning, which will result in areas of flash flooding.
A storm surge of 4 to 7 ft above normally dry ground is possible in the southeastern Bahamas.
Natricia Duncan
The Mayor of Black River, Richard Solomon, has described Hurricane Melissa’s impact on the coastal town in the southwestern parish of St Elizabeth, as catastrophic.
Speaking with the Guardian, he recounted the traumatic experience of riding out the category five, “storm of the century” at an emergency operating centre. He said:
The hurricane came around eight in the morning and lasted for around nine hours, during which we were pounded with heavy winds and a lot of rain. We got up to 16 feet of water at the centre. That was a bit scary for us, and we were hoping that it would not rise any further, because we were on the second floor, and I tell you, when we saw the water rising, it was a scary moment for us,” he said.
The entire town of Black River is devastated. And that devastation is so catastrophic that the prime minister classified this area as ground zero.
Black River is now without water and electricity and most buildings have lost their roof, Solomon said.
All the town’s vehicles and critical services, fire, police, hospitals, supermarkets are “immensely damaged”, he said, making search and rescue and damage assessment almost impossible.
Solomon, who was personally impacted said he was now focused on trying to help the most vulnerable and said:
My vehicle was totally covered by water. My roof went, so I do understand the pain that persons are feeling, but what is a priority for me now is to focus on getting aid relief for the most vulnerable at this point.
The mayor said that five people from Black River were confirmed dead, but he has heard of other deaths, which he has not yet been able to confirm due to the challenges with communications and transportation.
Solomon estimates that it will take billions to rebuild Black River after Melissa’s annihilation. The focus now, he said, was clearing impassable roads, which have cut off the town. He said:
We are now trying to get the major thoroughfares and critical lateral roads here so that we can get relief supplies in. As I indicated, most of our supermarkets, if not all, were impacted negatively so they won’t be able to provide supplies to persons who are in need at this time.
Summary of the day so far
The death toll from Hurricane Melissa has continued to rise as the storm left a trail of destruction across the Caribbean. If you’re just joining us now, here are some of the key moments of the day so far:
Dozens of people have died in Haiti after Melissa’s rains swelled river banks, according to reports. At least 25 people have been killed, according to latest updates.
In Jamaica, authorities confirmed four bodies had been recovered on Wednesday. Two people were found dead in the Black River area, the other two in the Gallon Beach district. Melissa slammed into Jamaica as a record-breaking and destructive category 5 storm with sustained winds of 185 mph before being downgraded to a category 3 when it hit Cuba with winds of 120 mph, according to the US National Hurricane Center.
Hurricane Melissa was downgraded to a category one storm late on Wednesday, with maximum wind speeds of 90mph before it hits the south east or central Bahamas.
Disaster Assistance Response Team personnel from across the US were on their way to Jamaica, the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic, where they will also attend to issues in neighbouring Haiti, three US state department officials have told the Associated Press. They were expected to arrive in the next 24-48 hours.
Jamaican officials said buildings on the island had suffered structural damage, roads were still impassable and power outages continued to be widespread. Airports were set to reopen on Thursday for emergency relief flights after damage there was said to be superficial.
At least 241 communities remained isolated and without communications following the storm’s passage across Santiago province, according to preliminary local media reports, affecting as many as 140,000 residents.
Across eastern Cuba, authorities evacuated around 735,000 people as the storm approached. Most remained in emergency centers. Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel said the country had suffered extensive damage and warned residents against letting down their guard as rains continued to lash the region.
The death toll from Hurricane Melissa in Haiti has been updated – with officials saying at least 25 people have been killed as the storm raged through the country.
On Wednesday evening, Melissa had top sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph) and was moving northeast at 16 mph (26 kph) according to the US National Hurricane Center in Miami. The hurricane was centered about 80 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of the central Bahamas.
Authorities in the Bahamas were evacuating dozens of people from the archipelago’s southeast corner ahead of Melissa’s arrival, the Associated Press reports.
Melissa’s center is forecast to move through southeastern Bahamas later Wednesday, generating up to 7 feet (2 meters) of storm surge in the area. By late Thursday, Melissa is expected to pass just west of Bermuda.
Jamaica’s airports to reopen on Thursday
Jamaica’s airports are set to reopen for emergency relief flights on Thursday, officials have said. Dary Vaz, the minister of energy, telecommunications and transport, said Normal Manley international airport in Kingston had sustained only superficial damage and that the main road to the airport was not damaged.
Ian Fleming airport in St Mary and Sangster international airport in Montego Bay would also report. Vaz said: “There are a lot of Jamaicans and other persons who want to help who we want to get in.”
Hurricane downgraded to category one en route towards The Bahamas
Hurricane Melissa has been downgraded to a category one storm, with maximum wind speeds of 90mph. It’s expected to move across the south east or central Bahamas in the next few hours and then move to the west of Bermuda late on Thursday.
US sending several dozen disaster relief workers and urban rescue teams to Caribbean
Disaster Assistance Response Team personnel from across the US are currently on their way to Jamaica, the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic, where they will also attend to issues in neighbouring Haiti, three US state department officials have told the Associated Press. They are expected to arrive in the next 24-48 hours.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the teams are not yet on the ground, said anticipated needs include temporary housing, food and hygiene kits.
They said the US military could play a role in transporting personnel and supplies to remote areas needing help but that a decision on the scale of such involvement had not yet been made.
The BBC hears similar, also reporting that the US was sending a disaster response team to Jamaica to assess the scale of need in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa.
Senior state department officials told the BBC that formal requests for help had also come from Haiti, which would be managed from the Dominican Republic, and the Bahamas – which had requested air support.
The officials said a team of US experts in water sanitation, food assistance and shelter was on its way to Jamaica and would be on the ground in the next 24 hours to assess needs, with supplies then following. They added that two search and rescue teams based in California and Virginia had been “activated” for the region and they were “trying to get them in as soon as we can”.
Earlier, US secretary of state Marco Rubio had said the White House was in close contact with governments in the Caribbean. “We have rescue and response teams heading to affected areas along with critical lifesaving supplies,” he said on social media.
