Cuba battered by Hurricane Melissa after Jamaica suffers record-breaking storm damage

Hurricane Melissa has battered Cuba with 200km/h winds after devastating Jamaica, leaving widespread flooding, power outages, and major destruction

A resident holds a piece of a roof before Hurricane Melissa hits the city of Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, on October 28, 2025. Picture: YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images

Hurricane Melissa slammed into Cuba early on Wednesday, hours after causing devastation in neighboring Jamaica as the strongest-ever storm on record to hit that Caribbean island nation.

Melissa hit the southern coast of eastern Cuba with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (195 kph), the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.