Hurricane Melissa has strengthened into a Category 5 storm as it draws closer to Jamaica, where forecasters say it will unleash catastrophic flooding, landslides and widespread damage

Hurricane Melissa was set to pummel Jamaica on Tuesday as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to lash the island since recordkeeping began 174 years ago. Hours before the storm, the Jamaican government said it had done all it could to prepare as it warned of catastrophic damage.

The eyewall’s destructive winds may cause total structural failure, particularly in higher elevations, leading to widespread infrastructural damage, prolonged power and communication outages, and isolated communities.

Hurricane Melissa threatens to make a direct strike on Jamaica as the most powerful storm in its history. See how strong it will become and where it’s headed.

Hurricane Melissa has grown into a Category 5 storm with 175 mph winds that's become Earth's strongest hurricane winds of the year. Warm water in the Caribbean is strengthening the system.

At that strength, it would be the strongest hurricane to hit the island since record-keeping began in 1851. Blamed for six deaths in the northern Caribbean as it headed toward the island, Melissa was on track to make landfall Tuesday in Jamaica before coming ashore in Cuba later in the day and then heading toward the Bahamas.