· 3 min read
illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on The Washington Post or enjoy below:
🗞️ Driving the news: Hurricane Melissa has explosively intensified into a Category 4 system and is on course to strike Jamaica late Monday or early Tuesday as the most powerful storm in the country’s recorded history
• In just over 24 hours, Melissa strengthened from a tropical storm to a major hurricane, with sustained winds nearing Category 5 intensity—marking one of the fastest rates of intensification ever observed in the Atlantic basin
🔭 The context: Melissa’s development is being fueled by exceptionally warm Caribbean waters—among the hottest on the planet and significantly above average
• The storm is moving slowly, heightening the risk of catastrophic flooding and landslides, particularly in Jamaica’s mountainous interior
• Melissa’s path will likely affect Haiti, eastern Cuba, and the southern Bahamas, compounding damage in multiple countries in less than three days
• The system follows last year’s deadly Hurricane Beryl, deepening regional trauma and preparedness urgency
🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Melissa exemplifies the climate-driven trend of slower-moving, rapidly intensifying hurricanes—patterns linked to warming oceans and shifting atmospheric conditions
• These storms are more destructive due to prolonged rainfall, extreme wind speeds, and storm surges
• Jamaica and neighboring countries, already facing economic and infrastructural challenges, are ill-equipped for repeated climate shocks
• Melissa underscores the growing threat of extreme weather to vulnerable nations with limited adaptation capacity, reinforcing calls for urgent international climate finance and resilience-building
⏭️ What's next: Landfall is expected Monday night into Tuesday, with the full impact spanning Jamaica, eastern Cuba, and the southern Bahamas by Thursday
• Relief efforts are already mobilising, including evacuations and emergency power grid planning
• Jamaica’s leaders warn that the recovery may require full-scale rebuilding, not just restoration. Regional and international disaster response mechanisms will be tested
• The storm is not forecast to make direct U.S. landfall, though remnants may influence weather in New England and Atlantic Canada
💬 One quote: “This is a bigger storm than last year and this is a potential direct hit.” – Matthew Samuda, Jamaica’s Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change
📈 One stat: Melissa intensified by 75 mph in 24 hours—twice the threshold required to qualify as a rapidly intensifying storm
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