Flooding from Hurricane Melissa killed 25 people in Haiti after the storm caused extensive damage in Jamaica, submerging entire communities underwater and destroying homes across the Caribbean island.
Melissa brought powerful waves and 185mph winds as it made landfall in Jamaica as a Category 5 storm on Tuesday, before heading to Haiti and on to Cuba.
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“Jamaica has gone through what I can describe as one of our worst periods. Our infrastructure has been severely compromised,” said Desmond McKenzie, minister of local government, during a press briefing on Tuesday. “The entire Jamaica has felt the brunt of Melissa,” he added.
McKenzie described the damage in St. Elizabeth Parish, which rests near where the hurricane made landfall, as “extensive.”
Read more: How to Help Those Impacted by Hurricane Melissa
Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared a disaster area late Tuesday.
“The reports that we have had so far would include damage to hospitals, significant damage to residential property, housing and commercial property as well, and damage to our road infrastructure,” Holness said on CNN after the storm had passed.
While no deaths had been confirmed as of Wednesday morning, Holness added: “We are expecting that there would be some loss of life.”
More than 25,000 Jamaicans were housed in shelters across the country on Wednesday, as residents cope with the strongest storm in the country’s recorded history. Seventy-five patients were transported to safety from the Black River Hospital, which experienced power outages.
Read more: Why Are We Seeing More Category 5 Hurricanes?
Melissa also wreaked havoc in Montego Bay, St. James, a major tourist destination, devastating a popular restaurant known as Pier One.
At least 25 people were killed in the southern Haitian town of Petit-Goâve when the banks of the La Digue River burst due to flash flooding, causing dozens of homes to collapse.
Jean Bertrand Subrème, the town’s mayor, told the Associated Press he was “overwhelmed by the situation” as he called for the government to help.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States was in contact with the governments of Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas.
“We have rescue and response teams heading to affected areas along with critical lifesaving supplies,” Rubio said in an X post.
Hurricane Melissa downgraded to a Category 3 storm as it made landfall in Cuba, and winds dropped from a peak of 185 mph to 105 mph as it moved east across the island.
Still, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned that some individuals would need to remain sheltered because of fallen power lines and flooded areas. Just over 77% of the country is without power, according to the Jamaica Observer, a local media outlet, as the Jamaica Public Service Company, the country’s sole electricity distributor, is experiencing difficulties due to the storm.
The government of Jamaica has launched its own recovery website to assist with recovery efforts.