Hurricane Melissa has charged into the top tier of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes of all-time, and is poised to be not only the worst landfall in Jamaican history, but one of the most intense hurricane landfalls ever on any landmass bordering the Atlantic, Gulf, or Caribbean.

As measured by Air Force and NOAA Hurricane Hunters, Melissa is now a Category 5 hurricane , with maximum sustained winds estimated to be 165 mph per the NHC’s 11 a.m. Monday advisory. The minimum pressure in the center of Melissa’s extraordinarily clear eye is estimated to be 908 millibars, and with intensification continuing, it is certainly possible that Melissa will join the elite group of just six Atlantic hurricanes to have a central pressure below 900 millibars.

Melissa may well make landfall at Categor

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