Tropical Storm Melissa could become a major hurricane by next week

Tropical Storm Melissa is threatening multiple Caribbean destinations with days of heavy rainfall and flooding as it crawls across the region at just 3 miles per hour.

According to the National Hurricane Center's (NHC) Thursday morning advisory, Melissa was located about 300 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and 240 miles south-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph.

Tropical storm-force winds extend up to 115 miles from the center. A hurricane watch is in effect for southwestern Haiti from the Dominican Republic border to Port-Au-Prince, with a tropical storm watch covering Jamaica.

Hurricane forecasted

According to the NHC, the forecast shows little change in strength over the next day, but significant strengthening by late Friday and over the weekend. 

CBS News' meteorologist Nikki Nolan reported that Melissa is forecast to become a "major" hurricane by early next week, though "forecast models are struggling to depict if it is going to move off to the northeast or stall out in the north-central Caribbean."

The NHC shared that Melissa will bring 5 to 10 inches of rain to southern Dominican Republic, southern Haiti, and eastern Jamaica through Sunday, with locally higher amounts possible. 

Northern areas can expect 2 to 4 inches through Sunday. "Significant, life-threatening flash flooding and numerous landslides are possible," the centre stated.

According to Yale Climate Connections, the storm could bring "multiple days of torrential rain over some of the Caribbean's most flood-vulnerable places," with Haiti facing particularly high risk.

Travellers currently in the region are recommended to monitor official sources and follow local authorities' guidance.

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