Hurricane Melissa has rapidly intensified into a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph, as of a report by TropicalTidbits at 5:56 AM UTC on October 26th. The storm is continuing to intensify and is expected to grow stronger on Sunday. The eye of the hurricane has cleared and is surrounded by a symmetric cold ring of thunderstorms, indicating continued rapid development. This intensification marks a significant upgrade from earlier reports. By 3:46 AM UTC on October 26th, Melissa had reached Category 3 status with 115 mph winds. Meteorologist NbergWX had previously stated that by 4:45 AM UTC on October 26th, the storm had become a Category 5 hurricane, the first on record to threaten Jamaica with sustained winds exceeding 170 mph and gusts over 200 mph. Meteorologist Brady Biggar also noted on October 26th that reconnaissance fixes indicated the storm was tracking southwestward. The rapid intensification of Hurricane Melissa has been attributed to the storm moving over exceptionally warm waters in the Atlantic. Officials had previously warned of extreme destruction to Jamaica, including major infrastructural damage, community isolation, and prolonged power outages. Airports in Jamaica were scheduled to close at 9 PM local time on October 25th in anticipation of the storm's impact. Meteorologist Jeremy DeHart had observed characteristics in the storm, such as a "buzzsaw" appearance and "square" mesovortices, suggesting it could reach Category 5 status.
