Hurricane Melissa intensified to 145 mph winds and 941 mbar pressure as of 5 PM EDT on October 26th, 2025, nearing Category 5 strength approximately 115 miles south-southwest of Kingston, Jamaica. The National Hurricane Center forecasts further strengthening and warns of catastrophic flash flooding and landslides across Jamaica and southern Hispaniola. Sirens sounded in Old Harbour Bay, Jamaica, as the storm approached. Radar imagery indicates Hurricane Melissa's outer eyewall is now fully embedded in the inner core, suggesting continued intensification is likely, according to StormHQwx. The storm's eye is described as drying and improving, with satellite presentations noted as "insane" by BackpirchCrew. The latest SHIPS forecast shows a 1.5-2.5 times climatological average probability of significant intensification over the next 12-24 hours. Outer bands of the hurricane are already affecting the island, with footage shared from Portmore, Rocky Point Port, St Margaret’s Bay, and Galina, St Mary. More of Jamaica is now expected to experience extreme rainfall totals of 20 to 30 inches as the forecast track has shifted westward, according to FloridaTropics1. The NHC continues to forecast Category 5 status and warns of extensive, long-duration damage to the island's infrastructure upon landfall. Bryce Shelton, a storm chaser on the ground in Jamaica, has provided updates on the "extremely powerful Category 4 hurricane" for MaxVelocityWX, with live coverage planned on YouTube. Footage from Kingston Harbour shows powerful winds and waves as Melissa approaches. Despite the looming threat, conditions were described as "breezy but nothing crazy...yet" with temporary cessation of rain at a beach location earlier in the day. A NOAA Hurricane Hunter mission, N42RF, was preparing to gather data, with meteorologist Matthew Cappucci onboard, following earlier observations of significant structural changes in the storm's eye and wind gusts of 130-145+ knots in the northeast eyewall between 5:45 PM and 7:15 PM UTC on October 26th, 2025. Previous dropsonde data indicated central pressure near 946-947 hPa with surface winds near 26 knots.
