The National Hurricane Center said this morning that Hurricane Melissa made landfall on the southern coast of Cuba as an "extremely dangerous" Category 3 storm, with winds of 120 mph. The storm hit near the city of Chivirico in the Cuban province of Santiago de Cuba.

In Jamaica, 25,000 people crowded into shelters after the hurricane destroyed homes and left most of the island without power.

Hurricane Melissa left dozens dead and widespread destruction across Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica, where roofless homes, toppled utility poles and water-logged furniture dominated the landscape Wednesday.

Most of Jamaica remains without power, as our correspondent reports floods, mudslides and "palm trees tossed like toothpicks".

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Cuba overnight after battering Jamaica as one of the most powerful landfalling storms in Atlantic basin history.

Hurricane Melissa's death toll has risen after the storm left a trail of destruction in Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba — and now heads for the Bahamas.

At least 20 people are dead in Haiti and another dozen are missing after a river in the town of Petit-Goâve, southwest of Port-au-Prince, flooded as Hurricane Melissa bombarded the country with heavy rain as it battered nearby Jamaica as a powerful Category 5 storm.

Arthur M. Blank's foundation is donating $2.5 million to help the Caribbean recover from the devastation of Hurricane Melissa.

Hurricane Melissa made its second landfall early Wednesday morning near Chivirico, Cuba, as a Category 3 storm with winds of 120 mph.