Hurricane Melissa is located near latitude 16.6 North, longitude 75.2 West. Hurricane Melissa could become a Category 5 hurricane by Monday afternoon.
There will be no direct or indirect impact for Florida or Georgia.
Melissa is moving slowly toward the west-northwest near 1 mph (2 km/h).
A slow west-northwestward or westward motion is expected today through the end of the weekend. The slow movement of this storm will make its landfall impact devastating. It is moving toward the west but will make a turn to the north and northeast on Monday and Tuesday.
According to the National Hurricane Center track, the center of Melissa is expected to move near or over Jamaica during the weekend and early next week, and it could be near or over eastern Cuba by the middle of next week.
Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 75 mph (120 km/h) with higher gusts.
Rapid intensification is forecast to occur over the next couple of days and Melissa is forecast to become a major hurricane by Sunday.
WIND: Tropical storm conditions are expected to begin in Jamaica by tonight, with hurricane conditions expected by Sunday or Monday. Tropical storm conditions are expected and hurricane conditions are possible within the watch and warning area in Haiti later today.
RAINFALL: Melissa is expected to bring total rainfall of 15 to 25inches to portions of southern Hispaniola and Jamaica intoWednesday, with local maxima of 35 inches possible across eastern Jamaica and the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti. Additional heavy rainfall is likely beyond Wednesday but exact storm totals are still uncertain. Catastrophic flash flooding and landslides are expected across southwestern Haiti and portions of Jamaica, with the possibility of catastrophic flood impacts also extending across the remainder of southern Haiti into southern Dominican Republic. For eastern Cuba, total rainfall of 5 to 10 inches, with local amounts to 15 inches, are expected into Wednesday resulting in life-threatening flash flooding and landslides. Additional heavy rainfall is likely beyond Wednesday; uncertainty at that time range precludes exact storm totals.
STORM SURGE: Life-threatening storm surge is becoming more likely along the south coast of Jamaica later in the weekend or early next week. Peak storm surge heights could reach 7 to 11 feet aboveground level, near and to the east of where the center of Melissa makes landfall. This storm surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves. There is a potential for significant storm surge along the southeast coast of Cuba early next week.
SURF: Swells generated by Melissa are expected to affect portions of Hispaniola, Jamaica, and eastern Cuba during the next several days.