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Hurricane Melissa is projected to become a infrequent highest-level cyclone as it shifts in the direction of the Caribbean island, bringing life-threatening sudden floods and mudslides.

The cyclone, which registered winds of up to 195 km/h as of 0600 Greenwich Mean Time, is currently turning north-west in the Caribbean region and is projected to make landfall by Tuesday, as reported by weather experts.

Advisories of blackouts and damage to infrastructure have been issued as this storm generates up to 30 inches of rainfall and storm surges as high as 13ft above normal levels. "Find safe refuge immediately," residents have been told.

Melissa is the 13th named cyclone in the current Atlantic season, which typically ends in November.

Category Five Hurricane Danger

A category five storm is the most intense classification, with sustained winds of at least 157 miles per hour.

Although Melissa is projected to reduce in intensity to a fourth-level cyclone before reaching Jamaica, experts said there was "very little practical difference in the total effects" upon making contact with land, and that the storm will be "at least that intensity" when it hits the nation.

Critical Safety Steps

With tropical storm-level gusts and precipitation already expected long before it passes over Jamaica's central region - possibly even the capital, Kingston - advisories emphasize that "readiness efforts must be accelerated".

"An extended timeframe of damaging winds and heavy rainfall are underway and will cause catastrophic and life-threatening rapid water accumulation and multiple rock slides," counseled weather authorities.

The nation's leader the statesman stated: "I know that there are many Jamaicans who are concerned, who are very concerned, and with good reason: worry is natural.

"But the most effective method to handle worry and any nervousness and concern is to be prepared."

Locals are being instructed to protect their properties with sand barriers and timber panels, and to accumulate basic necessities.

Broader Effects

Advisories are also ongoing for regions of Haiti encompassing the capital, Port au Prince, the neighboring country and the eastern part of Cuba, where the hurricane is projected to bring comparable impacts by the middle portion of the coming week.

Mudslides currently triggered by the hurricane have caused two deaths in the country, according to emergency services.

Expected Course

The hurricane is forecast to move across Cuba by the middle of the week before passing across the Caribbean archipelago and emerging into the open ocean.

By the point it makes contact with the Caribbean nation, it is predicted to have diminished to a category three cyclone.

Weather Context

Although it is hard to connect particular meteorological occurrences to climate change, scientists say it is causing weather phenomena increasingly frequent and more severe.

Higher ocean heat produce greater water vapor in the air, aiding in the development of storms.

Prior to the commencement of the current Caribbean cyclone season, weather organizations projected higher-than-average occurrence, mentioning warmer seas and likely stronger monsoon activity around African coastal regions - where tropical systems often form.