KINGSTON, Jamaica >> Hurricane Melissa has developed into a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of up to 140 mph (220kmh) and is expected to strengthen as it heads towards Jamaica, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Sunday.

Melissa is about 110 miles (180 km) south of Kingston and expected to make landfall in Jamaica Monday night or Tuesday morning and hit southeastern Cuba late Tuesday, the NHC said, with catastrophic floods, landslides and storm surges expected in the region.

During a press conference in Kingston on Sunday, authorities said both international airports were closed and 881 shelters have been activated around the country.

“Many of these communities will not survive the flooding,” Desmond McKenzie, minister of local government, said at the pres

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