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Hurricane Melissa Shatters Intensity Records
26 Feb
Summary
- Hurricane Melissa produced the strongest winds ever recorded in the Atlantic.
- The storm caused $8.8 billion in damages, making it Jamaica's costliest.
- Melissa's peak winds of 190 mph tie a record set in 1980.

Hurricane Melissa's maximum sustained winds were the strongest recorded in the Atlantic basin in 46 years, according to a new National Hurricane Center (NHC) analysis. The storm's peak intensity was upgraded, confirming it produced some of the most extreme winds ever measured.
Forming on October 21, 2025, Melissa rapidly intensified into a Category 5 hurricane. It made catastrophic landfall near New Hope, Jamaica, on October 28, causing $8.8 billion in damages and becoming the costliest hurricane in Jamaica's history. The storm also tragically claimed 102 lives across Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba.




