With the 11 p.m. Thursday advisory, Melissa was about 150 miles southeast of Kingston, Jamaica and 270 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, creeping north at only 3 mph and packing maximum sustained winds near 45 mph. Tropical-storm-force winds extended outward up to 140 miles from the center, underscoring the storm's broad reach.

We will be very fortunate if Melissa does not cause a humanitarian disaster, even as Florida is again in the clear of a strange 2025 hurricane season.

The country is staring down what could become a catastrophic, days-long assault as Melissa strengthens over some of the hottest ocean water on the planet.

When Melissa departs the Caribbean later next week, it may contribute to stormy conditions along much of the United States East Coast with a new round of rough surf and beach erosion in some areas.