Hurricane Melissa is set to hit Jamaica as streets remain empty

Hurricane Melissa strengthened further Tuesday as it crawled toward Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to lash the island since recordkeep-ing began 174 years ago.

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Hours before the storm, the Jamaican government said it had done all it could to prepare as it warned of catastrophic damage. The streets in the capital, Kingston, remained largely empty except for the lone stray dog crossing puddles and a handful of people walking briskly under tree branches waving in a stiff wind.

“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That's the challenge.”

The storm is expected to make landfall Tuesday and slice diagonally across the island. Shortly after, it is expected to hit Cuba.