Hurricane Melissa, Caribbean
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Follow live updates on Hurricane Melissa as the death toll reaches 38 people. Recovery efforts are underway in Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.
Communities across the Caribbean are reeling in the wake of Hurricane Melissa, which ripped through Jamaica, Cuba and Hispaniola, the island comprising Haiti and the Dominican Republic, this week. While officials said that damage assessments remained underway to determine the full scope of the destruction,
The strongest storm to strike the Caribbean island in modern history, the hurricane sustained winds of 298 km/h (185 mph) at its peak - stronger than Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans in 2005, killing 1,392 people.
Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Cuba overnight after battering Jamaica as one of the most powerful landfalling storms in Atlantic basin history.
Hurricane Melissa left dozens dead and widespread destruction across Cuba, Jamaica and Haiti on Wednesday, and it continued on to pass through the Bahamas as a weakened storm.