The most powerful storm to hit the region since 1988 could inundate some areas of eastern Jamaica with up to 40 inches of rain.

Hurricane Melissa, now a powerful Category 5 storm, is bearing down on Jamaica and is forecast to be the worst storm in the island's history. Melissa is set to bring catastrophic winds, rain, flooding and storm surge to Jamaica, where residents and tourists are sheltering in place. Landfall is expected early Tuesday morning.

As of 5 p.m. Monday, the National Hurricane Center found the hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 175 mph. The winds were so strong inside the eyewall of the storm that a NOAA Hurricane Hunter plane made the rare choice to head back early after experiencing severe turbulence.

Hurricane Melissa is edging towards Jamaica and set to make landfall as a historic Category 5 storm, with winds of over 160 mph. Jamaica is bracing for what the National Hurricane Center said would be catastrophic flash flooding and landslides caused by up to 40 inches of rain in some places. The storm is due to make landfall early Tuesday.

Melissa has already claimed the lives of at least six people in the northern Caribbean and is expected to make landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday, Oct. 28

As an island country in the Caribbean Sea, hurricanes aren’t new in Jamaica. Hurricanes hovering over the island while continuously dumping rain and blasting Category 4 or 5 winds, however, are a different brand.