Maximum sustained winds from the Category 5 storm are near 175 mph with higher gusts, according to the latest data from the NHC.

Hurricane Melissa spun into a Category 5 monster on Monday, churning toward Jamaica with what will likely be the most powerful winds ever recorded on the Caribbean island.

The hurricane was expected to drop torrential rains of up to 76 centimetres on Jamaica and southern Hispaniola — Haiti and the Dominican Republic — according to the hurricane centre.