Hurricane Melissa is now moving northeast from Cuba after hammering the island with powerful winds and rain. As the storm scrapes Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas with its destructive force, residents in low-lying and flood prone areas have been urged to evacuate ahead of a shelter-in-place order coming tonight.

Hurricane Melissa was hitting eastern Cuba hard early Wednesday after slamming Jamaica as a Category 5 storm. Maps show its forecast path.

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica as a Category 5 storm with wind speeds of up to 185 miles per hour.

After Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica, drone footage from the island shows the trail of devastation left by the storm.

Paula Robinson, who lives in Preston, has eleven members of her family living in Jamaica, including her mum, who she last spoke to on Monday. She said her mum told her "'if I never hear your voice again, just know I love you". "I told her you are going to hear my voice again!'"

The State Department activated a Caribbean disaster response team following Hurricane Melissa's devastating impact on Jamaica, with teams arriving Thursday to provide aid.

CORE, which has previous experience responding to storms in the Caribbean, has deployed air cargo ships of hygiene kits, tarps and essential relief supplies to Jamaica and is preparing to send resources to Haiti. The organization is accepting donations here.

Melissa killed dozens in Haiti when a river burst its banks and left tens of thousands without electricity in Jamaica.

Melissa is an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 hurricane plowing through Cuba after the storm made a historic landfall in Jamaica as one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes in history. Follow for live updates.

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday as a Category 5 storm, bringing lashing waves, powerful 185-mile-per-hour winds and life-threatening flooding to the Caribbean island nation.

Hurricane Melissa is so severe that even hurricane tracking weather planes have been forced to avoid the storm.