US prepared to offer humanitarian aid to Cuba after hurricane, Rubio says
The United States is prepared to offer immediate humanitarian aid to people of Cuba who were affected by Hurricane Melissa, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said in an X post on Thursday.
Rubio did not add any additional details.
Bermuda to close schools and ferries as hurricane heads towards island, says minister
Hurricane Melissa was expected to keep accelerating northeastward and “pass to the northwest of Bermuda” later on Thursday, before likely weakening on Friday, the US National Hurricane Center said.
Bermuda will close its causeway on Thursday night and all schools and ferries on Friday among other measures “out of an abundance of caution,” national security minister Michael Weeks said in a statement. He added:
I implore all residents to remain vigilant while we navigate another natural threat to our way of life.
People should check on their neighbours and stay off roads until further notice, he said.
Melissa struck Jamaica on Tuesday as the strongest-ever hurricane to directly hit its shores, with sustained winds of 185mph, far above the minimum strength for a category 5, the strongest classification for hurricanes.
In a neighbourhood of the island’s Montego Bay, 77-year-old Alfred Hines waded barefoot through thick mud and debris as he described his narrow escape from the rising flood waters.
“At one stage, I see the water at my waist and [after] about 10 minutes time, I see it around my neck here and I make my escape,” he told Reuters on Wednesday. He added:
I just want to forget it and things come back to normal.
The capital Kingston was spared the worst damage and its main airport was expected to reopen on Thursday.
But US forecaster AccuWeather estimated Melissa could cost $22bn in damages and economic loss and that rebuilding could take a decade or more.
Updated
Hurricane Melissa smashed through the northern Caribbean and was seen picking up speed as it churned across open ocean towards Bermuda on Thursday, leaving a trail of high winds and destruction from Jamaica to Cuba and Haiti in its wake.
People across the Bahamas and nearby Turks and Caicos hunkered down as the passing storm pummelled them with dangerous gusts and rain. About 600 miles (970km) northeast of the storm’s last position, Bermudans prepared for its approach, expected by the evening, reports Reuters.
Authorities across the region, struggling to keep track of the devastation, confirmed 25 deaths in Haiti – 10 of them children – and four in Jamaica.
As of 12pm GMT, Melissa was packing winds of close to 105 miles per hour (165kph), according to the US National Hurricane Center, downgraded from its peak to a category 2 hurricane.
The PA news agency have some additional details on the news that the UK government will charter flights to help British nationals leave Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa (see 12.13pm GMT).
UK foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said in a statement on Thursday:
The strong links between the UK and Jamaica mean many British nationals were there during the devastation of the hurricane, and we need to ensure they can get safely home, as we know how worrying and difficult the last few days will have been.
The UK government is chartering flights to bolster commercial capacity and ensure people who wish to return to the UK can do so as soon as possible.
Two specialist rapid deployment teams are travelling to Jamaica to facilitate the flights and provide consular assistance.
The UK government’s £2.5m in emergency humanitarian funding will go towards providing emergency supplies such as shelter kits, water filters and blankets, according to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). UK experts are also heading to the region to help coordinate and distribute aid.
Emergency relief flights began landing at Jamaica’s main international airport, which reopened late on Wednesday, as crews distributed water, food and other basic supplies, reports the PA news agency.
The government will release a form for those affected to register for the flights, and all British nationals who have already registered being in Jamaica will automatically contacted, the FCDO said. It asked all Britons in Jamaica to register that they are there.
Seat costs for the flights will be based on standard commercial fares, the FCDO said, adding that it will prioritise the most vulnerable such as people with medical needs and children.
British nationals and their immediate family members – a partner, spouse or children under 18 years old – are eligible. Windrush generations with indefinite leave to remain in the UK also qualify for the service.
The FCDO added that British nationals should not travel to the airport unless it has contacted them with a seat allocation.
Updated
Hurricane Melissa was expected to keep accelerating northeastward and “pass to the northwest of Bermuda” later on Thursday, before likely weakening on Friday, the Florida-based forecaster said.
Bermuda will close its causeway on Thursday night and all schools and ferries on Friday among other measures “out of an abundance of caution,” national security minister Michael Weeks said in a statement.
“I implore all residents to remain vigilant while we navigate another natural threat to our way of life,” he said. People should check on their neighbours and stay off roads until further notice, he added.
Here are some more images from Haiti yesterday:
UK charters flights to help Britons leave Jamaica after hurricane
The British government said on Thursday it is chartering flights to help British nationals leave Jamaica following Hurricane Melissa, the strongest-ever cyclone to hit the Caribbean island nation.
“The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has chartered a limited number of flights from Jamaica for British nationals who are unable to fly home commercially,” it said in a statement.
Britain on Wednesday said it was making £2.5m ($3.36m) available in emergency humanitarian funding to assist the Caribbean region’s recovery from Hurricane Melissa.
When Melissa came ashore in Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane with top winds of 185 mph (295 kph) on Tuesday, it tied strength records for Atlantic hurricanes making landfall, both in wind speed and barometric pressure. It was still a Category 3 hurricane when it made landfall again in eastern Cuba early Wednesday.
A hurricane warning remained in effect Thursday for Bermuda, AP reported. An earlier warning for the central and southeastern Bahamas was lifted but the US weather agency warned of additional rainfall up to 10 inches (254 mm).
Hurricane conditions were expected to continue through the morning in the southeastern Bahamas, where dozens of people were evacuated.
Melissa was a Category 2 storm with top sustained winds near 105 mph (169 kph) Thursday morning and was moving north-northeast at 21 mph (33 kph) according to the US National Hurricane Center in Miami.
The hurricane was centered about 215 miles (345 km) northeast of the central Bahamas and about 685 miles (1,105 km) southwest of Bermuda.
In Cuba, people began to clear blocked roads and highways with heavy equipment and even enlisted the help of the military, which rescued people trapped in isolated communities and at risk from landslides.
No fatalities were reported after the Civil Defense evacuated more than 735,000 people across eastern Cuba. They slowly were starting to return home, Reuters reported.
“We are cleaning the streets, clearing the way,” said Yaima Almenares, a physical education teacher from the city of Santiago, as she and other neighbors swept branches and debris from sidewalks and avenues, cutting down fallen tree trunks and removing accumulated trash.
In the more rural areas outside the city of Santiago de Cuba, water remained accumulated in vulnerable homes on Wednesday night as residents returned from their shelters to save beds, mattresses, chairs, tables and fans they had elevated ahead of the storm.
Jamaican prime minister Andrew Holness said up to 90% of roofs in the south-west coastal community of Black River were destroyed.
“Black River is what you would describe as ground zero,” he said. “The people are still coming to grips with the destruction.”
More than 25,000 people remained crowded into shelters across the western half of Jamaica, with 77% of the island without power.
Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency said Hurricane Melissa killed at least 20 people in Petit-Goave, including 10 children.
It also damaged more than 160 homes and destroyed 80 others.
Officials warned that 152 disabled people in Haiti’s southern region required emergency food assistance.
More than 11,600 people remained sheltered in Haiti because of the storm.
People across the northern Caribbean were digging out from the destruction of Hurricane Melissa on Thursday as deaths from the catastrophic storm climbed.
The rumble of large machinery, whine of chainsaws and chopping of machetes echoed throughout southeast Jamaica as government workers and residents began clearing roads in a push to reach isolated communities that sustained a direct hit from one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record.
Stunned residents wandered about, some staring at their roofless homes and waterlogged belongings strewn around them.
“I don’t have a house now,” said a distressed Sylvester Guthrie, a resident of Lacovia in the southern parish of St Elizabeth, as he held onto his bicycle, the only possession of value left after the storm.
“I have land in another location that I can build back but I am going to need help,” the sanitation worker pleaded.
Hurricane Melissa leaves 29 dead, headed for Bermuda next
Hello and welcome to the Hurricane Melissa live blog. I am Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines as the storm moves towards Bermuda.
It has already smashed its way through the northern Caribbean and was seen picking up speed as it churned across open ocean towards Bermuda on Thursday, leaving a trail of high winds and destruction from Jamaica to Cuba and Haiti in its wake.
People across the Bahamas and nearby Turks and Caicos hunkered down as the passing storm pummelled them with dangerous gusts and rain. Around 700 miles (1,100 km) north-east of the storm’s last position, Bermudans prepared for its approach, expected by the evening, Reuters reported.
Authorities across the region, struggling to keep track of the devastation, confirmed 25 deaths in Haiti – 10 of them children – and four in Jamaica.
As of 9am GMT, Melissa was packing winds of close to 105 miles per hour (165 kph), according to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC), downgraded from its height to a category 2 storm.
It was expected to continue accelerating north-eastward and “pass to the north-west of Bermuda” later on Thursday, before likely weakening on Friday, the Florida-based forecaster said.
Melissa struck Jamaica on Tuesday as the strongest-ever hurricane to directly hit its shores, with sustained winds of 185 mph, far above the minimum strength for a category 5, the strongest classification for hurricanes.
Read our full report here:
In other developments:
The most intense tropical cyclone to hit Jamaica in nearly two centuries, Melissa is one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes observed since record-keeping began. Climate scientists say human-caused global heating has contributed to the rapid intensification of modern-day storms.
Many Jamaicans woke up on Wednesday without power, with reports of whole neighbourhoods submerged. The prime minister, Andrew Holness, has declared the country a disaster area, giving authorities extra powers such as issuing mandatory evacuation orders for flooded regions and preventing price gouging.
Massive damage was reported across the island, much of it in the westernmost parts, where the category 5 cyclonic storm moved diagonally across ground at a slow pace, ripping roofs from buildings and flipping over cars. Photos showed a tree ripped out of the ground by the roots and roads submerged by gravel and earth.
Jamaica’s minister of local government, Desmond McKenzie, said the hurricane was “one of the worst experiences that [Jamaica] has ever encountered”.
In Mandeville, the capital and largest town in the parish of Manchester, residents were thankful that they were not as badly hit as other parts of the island, even if serious damage was visible. The city’s streets were strewn with the detritus the hurricane left in its wake – fallen trees blocked roads, some homes had their roofs missing and power lines had been downed.
One resident, Jack Gardner, 43, said the hurricane was “very deadly” but that his home had stayed up. “I wasn’t scared,” he said. “I get used to the storms.” Gardner said he had lived through storm Gilbert in 1988 as a child, storm Ivan in 2004, and storm Beryl, which hit Jamaica last year. Storms are named only when they are expected to have a severe impact.
Another resident of Mandeville, Lisa Henry, also said she had not been scared. “I was mostly praying,” said the 35-year-old. “I just passed the school, Manchester High, and the top [had been] ripped up,” she said. “Yes, it’s going to take back the country.”
