Evacuations are in place for parts of Cuba, especially vulnerable areas including nearby dams and in flood zones, as well as in mountainous regions that are susceptible to landslides. Hurricane Melissa is heading north towards Cuba and is expected to hit it within the next five hours roughly.

Hurricane Melissa was regaining strength Tuesday night as it was taking aim at Cuba after battering Jamaica throughout the day, forecasters said.

After grinding across the eastern end of Cuba, forecasters expect Melissa to gear up for a third landfall in as many days, this time on the central and southeastern Bahamas as a Category 2. It could bring up to 10 inches of rain and 5 to 8 feet of storm surge, enough to cause flash flooding and power outages on the islands.

Hurricane Melissa is now expected to make landfall in eastern Cuba on Wednesday after wreaking havoc in Jamaica, where forecasters have warned of further life-threatening flash floods and several landslides.

Melissa made landfall in southwestern Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, unleashing sustained winds near 185mph and unleashing lifethreatening floodi

No deaths have been reported since Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica but winds, floods and landslides have caused extensive damage across multiple parishes

Hurricane Melissa has intensified into a Category 4 storm as it moves swiftly across the Caribbean Sea toward eastern Cuba, the US National Hurricane

Historic, life-threatening flash flooding and landslides are expected in portions of Jamaica, southern Haiti and the Dominican Republic through the weekend, the NHC said. Peak storm surge heights could reach 9 to 13 feet above normal tide levels in Jamaica, accompanied by large and powerfully destructive waves.