Category 5 Hurricane Melissa makes landfall in Jamaica

Heavy floodwaters swept across southwestern Jamaica, winds tore roofs off buildings, and boulders tumbled onto roads Tuesday as Hurricane Melissa pummeled the Caribbean island as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record.

Landslides, fallen trees and numerous power outages were reported as Melissa hit with 185 mph (295 kph) winds near New Hope, with officials cautioning that the cleanup and damage assessment could be slow.

"There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5," Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. "The question now is the speed of recovery. That's the challenge."

Floodwaters trapped at least three families in their homes in the community of Black River in western Jamaica, and crews were unable to help them because of dangerous conditions, said Desmond McKenzie, deputy chairman of Jamaica's Disaster Risk Management Council.

"Roofs were flying off," he said. "We are hoping and praying that the situation will ease so that some attempt can be made to get to those persons."

He noted that extensive damage was reported in the southwestern parish of St. Elizabeth, which he said "is underwater."

McKenzie stressed that it was too early to talk about the extent of the damage because the hurricane — the strongest to hit the island since recordkeeping began 174 years ago — was still pummeling the country.

Rohan Brown, with Jamaica's Meteorological Service, warned that as Melissa moves off the coast, its counterclockwise rotation would bring a heavy storm surge to northern Jamaica through the night. The storm was maintaining Category 4 strength as it moved toward Cuba, where it was expected to cross the eastern part of the island overnight.

Nearly 15,000 people were in shelters in Jamaica, and some 540,000 customers 77 were without power, officials said.

Jamaican officials had warned against going outside during Hurricane Melissa, but curiosity got the better of a few Jamaican teens who had never experienced the wrath of a Category 5 system.

“When the wind howls, it feels as if the world is falling apart,” 15-year-old Gavin Fuller said with a grin. "I wanted to know what it feels like to stand in the eye of something so powerful."

Colin Bogle, a Mercy Corps adviser, said most families were sheltering in place despite the government ordering evacuations in flood-prone communities. He was sheltering with his grandmother in Portmore, where everything went dark after a loud explosion.

"The noise is relentless," he said. "People are anxious and just trying to hold on until the storm passes."

Based on reporting by Africanews.