BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Oct. 23, CMC – The death of an elderly man in the coastal town of Marigot in southern Haiti, has been attributed to flooding stemming from Tropical Storm Melissa.
According to Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency, the man was killed when a large tree fell on him, while five other people were injured in flooding in the central Artibonite area.
The storm continues to churn in the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea on Thursday, bringing a risk of dangerous landslides and life-threatening flooding to Jamaica and southern Hispaniola.
The Miami based National Hurricane Centre (NHC) , in its update at 11:00 (local time), said the center of Tropical Storm Melissa was located near latitude 15.4 North, longitude 74.9 West.
Melissa is moving toward the north-northwest near 2 mph (4 km/h) and a slow northward motion is forecast during the next day or two, followed by a westward turn over the weekend.
On the forecast track, Melissa is expected to move closer to Jamaica and the southwestern portion of Haiti during the next couple of days.
Maximum sustained winds are near 45 mph (75 km/h) with higher gusts and gradual strengthening is forecast over the next day or so, followed by more rapid intensification this weekend.
Melissa is forecast to become a hurricane in a couple of days and a major hurricane by the end of the weekend.
Meanwhile, in Jamaica, officials said that 881 shelters would be made available as needed. Courts were ordered closed and the light and power company, the Jamaica Public Service (JPS), is activating its Emergency Operations Centre as the island prepares for the impact of Tropical Storm Melissa.
The company says saturated soil from recent rains, coupled with expected heavy rainfall, could lead to flooding and landslides that may damage the power network and cause outages.
The JPS has also mobilized regional support, with the first group of line workers from St. Vincent set to arrive on Thursday, to assist with any necessary restoration efforts.
CMC/bd/kb/2025