Melissa roared ashore near Jamaicas southwestern town of New Hope, packing sustained winds of up to 295km/h, according to the US National Hurricane Center NHC, well above the minimum 252km/h wind speed of a Category 5 storm, the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale.
In southwestern Jamaica, the parish of St Elizabeth was left under water, an official said, with more than 500,000 residents without power.
The reports we have had so far include damage to hospitals, significant damage to residential property, housing and commercial property and road infrastructure, Jamaicas Prime Minister Andrew Holness said on CNN after the storm had passed.