Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic storms on record, struck Jamaica as a category 5 hurricane on October 28, 2025, fueled by unusually warm sea surface temperatures linked to climate change. Meteorologists expressed alarm over its rapid intensification and potential for catastrophic damage, including up to one meter of rain. Three people died in preparations for the storm.
Hurricane Melissa rapidly intensified in the Atlantic Ocean, reaching category 5 status before making landfall in Jamaica around 11am or 12pm local time on October 28, 2025. Experts described the storm's sustained and growing intensity as remarkable, stunning meteorologists and marking it as a historic event.
The storm's power stems from abnormal sea surface temperatures in the Caribbean, which were 1.4°C (2.5°F) higher than typical for October and extended to unusual depths. These conditions provided a vast reservoir of heat energy, preventing the storm from losing strength as it churned deeper waters to the surface. Initial estimates from Daniel Gilford and colleagues at Climate Central indicate that the warm waters fueling Melissa's intensification were 500 to 700 times more likely due to human-caused climate change.
"The ‘500 to 700 times more likely’ number is big," Gilford said. "It really illustrates how unlikely the extremely warm temperatures we are observing around Melissa would be without human-caused climate change."
Tropical cyclones like Melissa draw energy from warm ocean waters, where evaporation creates water vapor that condenses and releases heat, driving the storm's winds and rainfall. The hurricane's slow movement over land amplified the threat, potentially dumping up to one meter (40 inches) of rain over Jamaica's mountains.
"There has been a perfect storm of conditions leading to the colossal strength of Hurricane Melissa: a warm ocean which has fuelled its rapid intensification over the last few days, but it is also moving slowly, meaning more rain can fall whilst it moves across land," said Leanne Archer at the University of Bristol, UK. "Most of these conditions have been supercharged by the extra heat in our oceans and atmosphere due to climate change."
The combination of high winds and extreme rainfall raised fears of catastrophic damage. "This is one of those worst-case scenarios," said Hannah Cloke at the University of Reading, UK. "The whole country will have a deep and permanent scar from this beast of a storm. It will be a long and exhausting recovery for those affected."
Studies of past disasters suggest such events can hinder economic growth for decades, contradicting earlier notions of quick rebounds.