Jamaicans urged to heed warnings surrounding Hurricane Melissa

Residents in Jamaica were bracing for the impact of Category 5 Hurricane Melissa on Monday, as the storm is forecast to unleash destructive winds and bring catastrophic flooding in the coming hours.

The 5 p.m. advisory indicated that Melissa was packing maximum sustained winds of about 175 miles per hour. The core of the hurricane is expected to start moving over Jamaica tonight and early tomorrow.

In preparation, the government ordered evacuations for parts of the capital, and the entire island has been classed as threatened. In a national address, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said there could be catastrophic consequences for people living in low-lying and flood-prone areas. And he has urged them to heed the warnings.

But the acting shelter manager at the island’s largest emergency centre, Helen-Ann Wilkinson, said earlier in the day that despite the facility being fully equipped, only a few people had turned up.