Hundreds of British tourists are reported to be on lockdown inside a hotel in Jamaica[1] as a Category 5 hurricane barrels towards the country.
Guests at the Caribbean resort say they have been told the stay in their rooms until at least Wednesday for their own safety.
Hurricane Melissa is expected to be the strongest hurricane to hit the island since records began in 1851.
Three people die as storm moves over Caribbean
The slow-moving storm has killed at least three people in Haiti and a fourth person in the Dominican Republic, where another person remains missing.
Two people died in Jamaica over the weekend as they cut trees ahead of the storm.
Jamaica’s Water and Environment Minister Matthew Samuda said: “It’s nothing to play with. The time for preparation is all but over.”
‘Hundreds of British tourists’ trapped in hotel as deadly storm nears
At least 200 British tourists are “locked down” in a hotel in Jamaica as Hurricane Melissa – a deadly Category 5 storm – edges towards the Caribbean island.
Ranked at the highest possible rating on the Saffir-Simpson strength scale, with sustained winds over 157mph, Melissa threatens to unleash torrential rains and destructive winds on Jamaica.
She has already battered the neighbouring island, home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti, killing at least six people and displacing thousands. The storm is expected to hit Jamaica overnight or in the early hours of Tuesday, with stronger winds than those experienced by its neighbours.
Read more: ‘Hundreds of Brits’ trapped in hotel as deadly storm nears[2]
Sky News)
Hurricane Melissa set to be strongest in Jamaica’s recorded history
Category 5 is the top of the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale, meaning sustained winds exceed 157 mph.
Melissa would be the strongest hurricane in recorded history to directly hit the small Caribbean nation, meteorologists have said.
References
- ^ lockdown inside a hotel in Jamaica (www.mirror.co.uk)
- ^ ‘Hundreds of Brits’ trapped in hotel as deadly storm nears (www.mirror.co.uk)