The National Hurricane Center warned Jamaican residents to take immediate cover as the eye of the "extremely dangerous" Hurricane Melissa began to make landfall on the southwest coast of the island Tuesday morning.

The storm is expected to bring destructive winds and life-threatening and catastrophic flooding and landslides to Jamaica, forecasters say.

Up to 40 inches of rain, 13 feet of storm surge and 160 mph sustained winds will cause “extensive infrastructure damage” that will cut off communities, the National Hurricane Center warned. Melissa has already killed three people in Haiti and Jamaica each and one person in the Dominican Republic.

Matthew Cappucci, a senior meteorologist at MyRadar and storm chaser, spoke with NBC News’ Kate Snow about his experience flying into the eye of Hurricane Melissa aboard a NOAA aircraft and the concerns over the Category 5 storm making landfall.