Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean are staring down what could become a catastrophic, days-long assault of extreme rainfall and damaging winds with a strengthening Tropical Storm Melissa expected to become a major hurricane over some of the hottest ocean water on the planet.

Melissa has already turned deadly across Haiti and the Dominican Republic, but AccuWeather meteorologists warn that the worst may be yet to come with the storm on track to intensify.

Melissa strengthened into a hurricane southeast of Jamaica and is set to rapidly grow, raising the risk for catastrophic flooding and wind damage across Jamaica and the Caribbean, where the storm has already killed at least four people.

An intensifying Melissa is expected to bring destructive flooding to Jamaica, southern Haiti and the Dominican Republic before tracking toward Cuba next week.

Jamaica's airports are closing due to Hurricane Melissa, with flight cancellations by JetBlue, American Airlines, Air Canada, Caribbean Airlines, and Southwest.

Tropical Storm Melissa remains nearly stationary over the north-central Caribbean Sea, but signs point to strengthening in the coming days. While the storm is s

Life-threatening flooding, landslides and storm surge are expected in Jamaica and southern Hispaniola as Melissa continues to strengthen.

A major international airport in Jamaica will close on Saturday night as Hurricane Melissa closes in on the island, officials announced. The Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston will be shut down at 9 p.m. after the departure of the final scheduled flight of the night.