According to the National Hurricane Center's 8 a.m. Tuesday advisory, Category 5 Hurricane Melissa is in the Caribbean Sea, 55 miles south-southeast of Negril Jamaica and 265 miles southwest of Guantanamo Cuba. With maximum sustained winds of 175 mph, the hurricane is moving to the north-northeast at 7 mph.

Over 40 million Americans will soon be without federal food assistance as SNAP benefits are set to expire on Saturday. And, Jamaica braces for Hurricane Melissa to bring over 170 miles per hour winds.

This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

Article last updated: Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, 8 p.m. ET

Hurricane Melissa was at Category 4 early Sunday and forecast to be at Category 5 over the Caribbean in the next 24 hours as it heads for a Jamaica landfall, forecasters said. The storm, expected to cause life-threatening flooding and landslides ...