Hurricane Melissa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across the Caribbean
The rumble of large machinery, whine of chain saws, and chopping of machetes echoed through communities across the northern Caribbean on Thursday as they dug out from the destruction of Hurricane Melissa and assessed the damage left behind.
In southeastern Jamaica, government workers and residents began clearing roads in a push to reach dozens of isolated communities that sustained a direct hit from one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes on record.
Stunned residents wandered about, some staring at their roofless homes and waterlogged belongings strewn around them.
“I don’t have a house now,” said a distressed Sylvester Guthrie, a resident of Lacovia in the southern parish of St. Elizabeth, as he held onto his bicycle, the only possession of value left after the storm.
“I have land in another location that I can build back, but I am going to need help,” the sanitation worker said.
Emergency Relief Efforts
Emergency relief flights began landing at Jamaica’s main international airport, which reopened late Wednesday, as crews distributed water, food, and other basic supplies. Helicopters thrummed above communities where the storm flattened homes, wiped out roads, and destroyed bridges, cutting them off from assistance.
“The devastation is enormous,” Jamaican Transportation Minister Daryl Vaz said.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness said up to 90% of roofs in the southwest coastal community of Black River were destroyed.
“Black River is what you would describe as ground zero,” he said. “The people are still coming to grips with the destruction.”
Authorities said they have found at least four bodies in southwest Jamaica.
More than 25,000 people remained crowded into shelters across the western half of Jamaica, with 72% of the island without power and only 35% of mobile sites in operation.
“We understand the frustration, we understand your anxiety, but we ask for your patience,” Vaz said.
A house is flooded after Hurricane Melissa passed through Santa Cruz, Jamaica, Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix),
Matias Delacroix / AP
Death and Flooding in Haiti
Melissa also unleashed catastrophic flooding in Haiti, where at least 25 people were reported killed and 18 others missing, mostly in the country’s southern region.
“It is a sad moment for the country,” said Laurent Saint-Cyr, president of Haiti’s transitional presidential council.
He said officials expect the death toll to rise and noted that the government is mobilizing all its resources to search for people and provide emergency relief.
Steven Guadard, who lives in Petit-Goâve, said Melissa killed his entire family.
“I had four children at home: a 1-month-old baby, a 7-year-old, an 8-year-old and another who was about to turn 4,” he said.
Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency said Hurricane Melissa killed at least 20 people, including 10 children, in Petit-Goâve, where more than 160 homes were damaged and 80 others destroyed.
More than 11,600 people remained sheltered in Haiti because of the storm.
Residents wade through a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa in Petit-Goave, Haiti, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
Odelyn Joseph / AP
Slow Recovery in Cuba
In Cuba, heavy equipment began to clear blocked roads and highways, and the military helped rescue people trapped in isolated communities and at risk from landslides.
No deaths were reported after the Civil Defense evacuated more than 735,000 people across eastern Cuba ahead of the storm. They slowly were starting to return home.
The small, iconic town of El Cobre in the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba was one of the hardest hit by Hurricane
