The Caribbean is reeling and the Bahamas are bracing for impact as Hurricane Melissa, a storm of historic ferocity, continues its devastating march across the Atlantic. The hurricane has left a trail of ruin in its wake, claiming at least 30 lives in Haiti and reducing parts of Jamaica and Cuba to rubble.
Now somewhat weakened but still a major threat, the storm is bearing down on the Bahamas, promising damaging winds and life-threatening flooding before it sets its sights on Bermuda.
Haiti’s Tragic Toll and Jamaica’s “Disaster Area”
The human cost is already staggering. In southern Haiti, the hurricane’s passage triggered catastrophic flooding. According to civil defense officials, at least 20 people, including 10 children, have been killed, with 10 more reported missing. “People have been killed, houses have been swept away by the water,” said one resident in the flooded town of Petit-Goave, painting a picture of sudden, violent loss.
In Jamaica, the scene is one of “tremendous, unprecedented devastation,” according to a UN official. Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared the entire island a disaster area after the hurricane tied the 1935 record for the most intense storm to make landfall there.
The storm smashed infrastructure, destroyed homes, and left an estimated 25,000 people in shelters. With communications down and roads impassable, the full scale of the destruction is still unknown. For farmer Christopher Hacker in Seaford Town, the loss is total. “Everything is gone,” he said, surveying his flattened restaurant and banana plantations. “It will take a lot to recover from this.”
Cuba’s “Extensive” Damage and a Global Response
In Cuba, President Miguel Diaz-Canel confirmed the damage was “extensive.” In the eastern part of the island, already battling a severe economic crisis, residents emerged from shelters to find flooded and collapsed homes, inundated streets, and downed power lines. Mariela Reyes, 55, saw the violent winds lift the roof off her home and dump it a block away. “It’s not easy to lose… the little you have,” she said, a sentiment echoing across the region.
The international community is mobilizing a response. The United States has rescue teams and supplies heading to affected areas, and the UK government has announced millions in emergency funding. Notably, US aid was mentioned for Jamaica, Haiti, and the Bahamas, but not for Cuba, highlighting ongoing political tensions even in the face of natural disaster.
A “Brutal Reminder” in a Warming World
As recovery efforts begin, climate scientists are pointing to Hurricane Melissa as a textbook example of how human-caused climate change is supercharging storms. Warmer ocean waters inject more energy, leading to stronger winds and heavier rainfall, making storms like Melissa more intense and destructive.
UN Climate Chief Simon Stiell called such mega-storms a “brutal reminder of the urgent need to step up climate action.” For the islands on the front lines, the debate is theoretical no longer. The rising human and economic cost, as Stiell noted, “grows faster and bigger each year,” making the task of rebuilding after each storm more daunting than the last.
