KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — A strengthening Melissa has grown into a Category 4 hurricane and U.S. forecasters say it could reach Category 5 status, unleashing torrential rain and threatening to cause catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean, including Haiti and Jamaica. The U.S. National Hurricane Center added that Melissa is likely to reach the southern coast of Jamaica as a major hurricane late Monday or Tuesday morning, and urged people on the island to seek shelter immediately. Melissa was centered about 115 miles (185 kilometers) south-southwest of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 295 miles (470 kilometers) south-southwest of Guantୡmo, Cuba. It had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 kph).
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