Yikes, not sounding good at all for Jamaica and nearby areas. Praying for safety for those there and for their loved ones who are worried. 
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It sounds like it is going to decimate Jamaica 
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I am absolutely heartsick reading the updates and predictions.
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Iāve been following thisā¦and it sounds horrible for the people of this island. I am sure there are relief organizations already mobilizing to helpā¦if needed.
I just watched a video this morning of them doing what they can to move the animals at the zoo and secure the enclosures of the animals that they canāt relocate. In some cases, all they can do is board up the enclosures. God bless them for caring about these animals when their own lives are in danger.
Iāve also been following some TikToks of travelers who either couldnāt leave or for some unknown reason, decided to stay (some, who chose to fly down anyway because they didnāt want to lose their money). One group of young 20-something girls is housed high up on a mountain and will hunker down with the villaās staff in staff quarters, but others are in resorts located right on the ocean. I am worried for the latter groups. In all cases, the Jamaican staff appear to be very hands-on and well-versed on how to do their best to keep these vacationers safe. Prayers for all.
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Ugh. I think i saw this in a horror movie. But in seriousness, hoping the island will avoid the worst of the storm.
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Probably the came folks who will travel when they have Covid symptoms -
My guess is they will be the first ones to call for the US government to come and get them out. I live an hour inland from the Gulf in prime hurricane country. It is no joke, no electricity, no gas for weeks sometimes. And thatās in the US, where the response is well organized.
I donāt want to imagine what it will be like after a slow moving cat 5 in a poor island nation. My thoughts are with Jamaica, this looks absolutely horrific.
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A lot of tourists are saying that even if they could get a flight out, the airlines were charging $2k++ and they couldnāt afford to pay that. A video from the girls staying in the villa (who Iāve since learned are on a yoga retreat) were getting quotes of $6k each for a private jet (some of them did leave but three girls stayed behind). Iām not sure what travel insurance would cover in this situation. I would hesitate to travel to hurricane prone areas during the active season. Plus, this storm has been milling around the Caribbean for a week or more and had been projected to hit Jamaica & Cuba in some capacity.
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If this doesnāt give you a sick feeling in your stomach, nothing will.
From meteorologist Dylan Federico:
āMelissa is the equivalent of a 20 mile wide EF-4 tornado thatās about to strike Jamaica. Words canāt even describe the catastrophic damage thatās about to occur in Jamaica.ā
That is an absolutely horrifying description.
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Iāve done a cat 5 hurricane. While it may actually be short and quick as it blows through the aftermath lasts years. Anyone who stays willingly doesnāt understand how trapped you can be afterwards. Your environment turns into a bomb struck war zone over a very short amount of time. Iāve read that supplies and emergency crews are already assembled and ready to go. Praying thatās the case.
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I know Iām being skeptical but I wonder about this
Itās certainly creating good content.
They probably knew before they flew to Jamaica that this hurricane was coming. They could have switched their flights and hotel reservations before they came. They also didnāt call their travel insurance company when they were trying to get off the island to see if they would pay?
I saw this on TikTok and wonder if the allure of being famous and creating content outweighed getting off the island
Saying that we were in the BVI last year. Lots of construction from Irma in 2017. Some of the resorts reopened in late 2021
Hard to create content when all communications are cut. No phone, no cell, no internet. Lucky to get the word out youāre still alive.
Iāll add no electricity, no plumbing, no roads, no water, no gas, no fresh food.
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Thatās what I think. But people were all over TikTok posting updates.
I can imagine theyāre posting now. Wait a few hours. See what it looks like in the morning. Also depends on where they areāMontego Bay wonāt be nearly as bad as Kingston.
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??? Montego Bay was very close to, if not in, the eyewall. Kingston was well to the east and I believe outside of the hurricane force winds?
I admit I was in the Bahamas with H (then BF) when Hurricane Andrew passed over us. We got evacuated out of our el cheapie hotel (think bare cinder block walls with a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling and an iron burn on the carpet) to a fancy resort on the higher side of the island. We wound up with our own private villa, and I admit we had a blast. We were young and dumb! (19 & 23). Anyhow, I canāt cast too many stones at others.
I flew into Haiti just as Hurricane Matthew was about to hit. We almost didnāt make it - we got held in Atlanta while Delta debated whether or not to fly the route to Port-au-Prince. Eventually they decided to go for it, and it was the very last flight out until the storm had passed.
We sheltered in place at a bed and breakfast in Port-au-Prince and fortunately didnāt get the worst of it and, in fact, I was even able to turn on the the vice presidential debate just in time to hear Mike Pence say, āI try to spend a little time on my knees every day.ā 
I wasnāt going for vacation, though, but for work and really didnāt want to cancel the trip because there wouldnāt soon be another opportunity to get everyone in the same place to do what we needed to do, so we decided to take our chances on the storm. But I also grew up on the coast of south Florida, so I probably have a higher than average risk tolerance for storms and flooding.
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Youāre right. Weather doesnāt care about projections. It goes where it wants. All I know is just a few miles difference can be big in destruction.
From what Iāve heard, the yoga ladies safe but lost their Starlink connection (per one of their relatives). The people in the resorts that Iāve been following seemed to do okay too although the damage around the resorts is devastating. One of the weather teams that was in a cement house in St. Annās Parish had to run for their live as all the glass windows exploded.
Iām wondering how long it will take to get all of these tourists out of Jamaica.