Melissa heads for Bermuda; Jamaica’s airports partially resume flights

Hurricane Melissa is now moving away from the Greater Antilles after delivering a devastating Category 5 landfall in Jamaica and a somewhat weaker – yet still powerful – strike on southeastern Cuba.

The storm will continue to bring rain to parts of the region as it heads toward Bermuda on Thursday (Oct. 20).

The Canadian government on Wednesday updated its risk level for Bermuda to avoid non-essential travel ahead of the hurricane’s arrival.

As of Wednesday night, Melissa was passing through the Bahamas as a Category 1 after making landfall in Cuba earlier in the morning.

By Wednesday night, Melissa will accelerate northeastward across the Atlantic, steered by the jet stream.

According to the National Hurricane Centre (NHC), the storm is forecast to strengthen again into a Category 2 hurricane before passing close to Bermuda on Thursday night.

Bermuda is expected to see a brief period of strong winds and heavy rain.

Tropical Storm Melissa formed last Tuesday morning, the 13th storm of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, in the central Caribbean Sea.

Early Monday morning, the storm intensified into the third Category 5 hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic season, with lightning flashing within its eyewall.

Recovery begins in Jamaica 

Meanwhile, recovery and restoration efforts are underway in Jamaica, where officials in the hardest-hit regions describe the devastation as beyond catastrophic.

Footage circulating online show the storm obliterating buildings, tearing off roofs and flicking debris across the island.

At its height, the storm unleashed winds approaching 300 km/h, inflicting heavy damage on the island’s southwest and northwest. Authorities are still assessing the full scope of the destruction.

Video released by the Jamaica Constabulary Office showed the aftermath of devastation in Black River, a city in St. Elizabeth parish’s southwest, following the passage of the storm.

The parish, known for producing much of the island’s crops, was “underwater” after the storm, said Desmond McKenzie, deputy chairman of Jamaica’s Disaster Risk Management Council.

Hurricane Melissa also damaged four of Jamaica’s hospitals and left one without power, forcing officials to evacuate 75 patients, reports say.

As of Wednesday, Dana Morris Dixon, Jamaica’s education minister, said more than 77 per cent of residents were without power, The Associated Press reported.

Airports partially resume flights

Relief flights resumed at Norman Manley International Airport, which serves Kingston, on Wednesday at 4 p.m., with commercial flights restarting Thursday (Oct. 29) at 7 a.m., according to a notice that was posted by Jamaica Information Service and shared by the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB).

Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay will host relief flights on Thursday at 10 a.m., while the resumption of commercial flights is still to be announced.

Despite visible damage to Gates 1–5 at Sangster International, most of the airport remains intact and operational, reads the JTB’s notice.

“The worst has passed"

“The worst has passed,” said Angella Bennett, regional director for Canada at the JTB, in a video posted to her social media on Wednesday. “Now we unite and build Jamaica.”

For anyone who wants to donate to Jamaica’s hurricane relief efforts, the Jamaican government has set up an official website, which can be viewed here. 

The Jamaica Tourist Board has also updated its Hurricane Melissa FAQ.

For detailed information on airport openings and closures, shelters, and any other required information, contact the Tourism Emergency Operations Centre.

They can be reached as follows:

Emergency Lines:

1- 876- 282-6712

1- 876- 469-0265  (Also on WhatsApp)

1- 658-213-2804

1- 658-213-2803

1- 658-213-2802

Email: teoc@mot.gov.jm

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