Human-caused climate change is making major hurricanes like Melissa much stronger, faster and ultimately more life-threatening

After weakening to a Category 1 hurricane after its passage across the rugged terrain of eastern Cuba, by Wednesday afternoon Melissa was recovering over the waters around the speckled islands of the southeastern Bahamas.

Heavy floodwaters swept across southwestern Jamaica, winds tore roofs off buildings and boulders tumbled onto roads Tuesday as Hurricane Melissa came ashore as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record.

Jamaica felt the wrath of Hurricane Melissa, a Category 5 storm, which made landfall on Tuesday and brought with it winds of up to 185 mph (295 kph). Mandatory evacuations were ordered by the authorities in several high-risk areas in the southeast of the island in preparation for the storm.

Note: These stories are a series of profiles accompanying Helene: What We Lost, What We Found, a powerful investigative documentary examining the devastation and resilience that followed Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina. Watch the documentary ...

TAMPA, Fla. — One year ago, on Sept. 26, Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region as a Category 4 storm. The hurricane caused significant damage across the Tampa Bay area, leaving homes and businesses destroyed. Surge levels in some ...