Hurricane Melissa carved a path of destruction across the Caribbean, leaving fatalities, widespread flooding, and significant damage in its wake on October 30, 2025. The storm struck southwestern Jamaica on October 28, 2025, with winds exceeding 185 mph, causing catastrophic flooding and destroying historic sites, including the 1700s Black River Anglican Church.

Authorities have declared Jamaica a disaster area as search-and-rescue and clean-up efforts are underway. Power outages and communication disruptions persist across the island nation.

Hurricane Melissa: Facts, FAQs, and how to help

• Fast Facts: Hurricane Melissa
• What’s the latest update on Hurricane Melissa?
• What’s the impact of Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean?
• How many people have been affected by Hurricane Melissa?
• How is World Vision helping communities impacted by Hurricane Melissa?
• What’s the impact of Hurricane Melissa on the people of Haiti?
• How can I help people affected by Hurricane Melissa and other disasters?

Fast Facts: Hurricane Melissa

• Formed on October 21, 2025, as the 13th named storm of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season.
• Intensified into a Category 5 hurricane on October 27, 2025.
• Reached maximum sustained winds at 185 mph, with higher gusts, according to NOAA.
• Made landfall in Jamaica on October 28, 2025, causing catastrophic winds, torrential rains, and flooding.
• The storm affected millions across the Caribbean, including Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.
• Torrential rain lashed Haiti, the Caribbean’s most populous nation, causing floods and landslides.
• Resulted in nearly 30 deaths across the region: Haiti (25 deaths, including 10 children), Jamaica (4 deaths), and the Dominican Republic (1 death). Many others are missing.
• Endangered 1.6 million children in Jamaica, Haiti, and the surrounding islands.
• Caused widespread displacement, infrastructure damage, and agricultural loss across the Caribbean.

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What’s the latest update on Hurricane Melissa?

As of October 30, 2025, Hurricane Melissa had weakened to a Category 1 storm.

Melissa is currently 430 miles west-southwest of Bermuda, moving northeast at 30 mph. After passing Bermuda, the storm is expected to weaken further as it heads toward the Canadian Maritimes. By Saturday, Melissa is expected to become a strong post-tropical storm near Newfoundland.

At its peak, Melissa was a Category 5 hurricane, causing catastrophic damage across Cuba, Haiti, and Jamaica.

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What’s the impact of Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean?

Hurricane Melissa has unleashed powerful winds, torrential rainfall, and landslides across the Caribbean. As of October 30, 2025, the latest updates on the storm’s impact by countries are as follows:

Cuba

• Authorities had evacuated more than 700,00 people across eastern Cuba ahead of the storm’s landfall.
• In the province of Santiago alone, at least 241 communities remained isolated and without communications, affecting up to 140,000 residents.

Dominican Republic

• Heavy rains and widespread flooding triggered landslides, damaging homes and displacing hundreds of  900 people. Over 1.1 million people are without access to safe drinking water.

Haiti

• At least 25 people, including 10 children, have died in Haiti, and 12 are missing. Damage reports indicate that over 1,000 homes have been flooded, damaged, or destroyed, and nearly 12,000 people have moved into emergency shelters.

Jamaica

• Up to 1.5 million people could be impacted by the storm. Widespread power outages have left at least 72% of the island without electricity, and many areas are reporting catastrophic infrastructure damage.
• AccuWeather estimates that Melissa could cause $22 billion in damages and economic loss, with rebuilding potentially taking a decade or more.

Across the region, children are among the most vulnerable, facing disrupted schooling, unsafe shelter, and rising risks of malnutrition and exploitation.

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How is World Vision helping communities impacted by Hurricane Melissa?

In Haiti, we already have a strong presence and are taking steps in our disaster relief efforts there:

• Pre-positioned emergency supplies: We are supporting at least 4,000 households with food, clean water, hygiene kits, and shelter materials. Local networks shared alerts and preparedness tips, helping residents brace for the storm’s impact.

In Jamaica, where World Vision doesn’t operate, we are preparing hurricane disaster relief through our partnerships:

• Pre-positioned emergency aid supplies: All six World Vision warehouses have essential supplies ready to deploy, with initial loads coming from Pittsburgh and Dallas to expedite delivery. As of October 30, 2025, two shipping containers of emergency response supplies from our Pittsburgh warehouse have been dispatched to Miami. Once distribution hubs in Jamaica are identified by the National Baptist Convention (NBC), World Vision will work to transport the containers to a port in Jamaica and onward to NBC church distribution sites.  
• Shipping containers of aid: Immediate relief supplies from our Pittsburgh warehouse to Miami, for onward transport to Jamaica. Supplies include:
  • Flood buckets
  • Generators
  • Hygiene kits
  • Tarps
  • Additional emergency items

Through these efforts, World Vision is working to ensure that children and families in both Haiti and Jamaica can receive urgent assistance in the wake of Hurricane Melissa.

“With communications down and so many communities cut off, our biggest challenge is getting aid to those who need it most,” said Mike Bassett, World Vision’s national director of domestic humanitarian and emergency affairs. “We’re working with partners to deliver supplies and reach families in the hardest-hit areas.”

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What’s the impact of Hurricane Melissa on the people of Haiti?

At least 25 people have died across Haiti, and 13 are missing. Damage reports indicate that at least 450 homes have been flooded, damaged, or destroyed.

“Children and families in Haiti are facing compounding crises,” said Lesly Michaud, national program director in Haiti. “We are committed to standing with communities through this storm and beyond, ensuring they receive the support they need to recover and rebuild.”

Prior to the storm, Haiti was already facing significant challenges. One of the world’s most vulnerable countries, Haiti’s nearly 5 million people — half of them children — are facing severe hunger. World Vision warns that Hurricane Melissa could further devastate food systems and set back recovery efforts amid ongoing violence and displacement.

“Food insecurity has been plaguing Haiti for the past year or so, where more than half of the population is food insecure,” said Guy F. Vital-Herne, communications manager for World Vision in Haiti. “The impact that we are seeing so far of Hurricane Melissa is putting more pressure now on some populations, with many crops being destroyed right now.”

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How can I help people affected by Hurricane Melissa and other disasters?

• Pray: Join us in praying for all those impacted by Hurricane Melissa and other disasters around the world.
• Give: Your gift will help deliver urgent aid to children and families impacted by this hurricane and other disasters around the world.

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At World Vision, we’re big fans of Giving Tuesday. This global generosity movement started in 2012 as a day for doing good and falls each year on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. In 2025, that’s December 2. It’s a day to flex those generosity muscles and support your favorite nonprofits or charities. Think of Giving Tuesday like an extension of that moment when everyone around the Thanksgiving table shares what they’re grateful for — a day for not only counting blessings, but also passing them on to others in need.

Ready to give back as you give thanks? Read on for five reasons why Giving Tuesday’s the perfect day to do so.

Reason #1: Double your joy

Lots of organizations have donation matches on Giving Tuesday. If they do, that means when you give $5, it becomes $10 to further support a charity and have a bigger impact. Knowing that your money can support extra people with no extra effort is a great feeling. Most organizations will publicize their matches leading up to Giving Tuesday, so you can usually see on their website or social media if your gift will double.

Surrounded by our own comforts and needs, we sometimes forget to prioritize generosity toward others who have a lot less than us. To keep generosity central, my family has our own “matching gift” program: When we spend a certain amount on a home or lifestyle item, we donate the equivalent amount to a charity or nonprofit. The point isn’t to make ourselves feel good, but to remember that “… life does not consist in the abundance of [one’s] possessions,” as Jesus tells us in Luke 12:15 (ESV). It’s a tangible reminder that our money is God’s and that He can do more with what we have than we can imagine.

Reason #2: Check off Christmas shopping

It’s as inevitable as It’s a Wonderful Life reruns all December: You make your Christmas list, jotting down gift ideas for your sister, your roommate, your kids. Then you get to that one person who’s tough to shop for. You know who it is. For me, it’s my dad. He’s not big on gifts, and he still happily wears clothes from the mid-’90s (although those ARE making a comeback!). But I found a solution to this Christmas conundrum: a donation in his name to a poverty-fighting fund.

We all have that person in our life we want to find a just-right gift for. Whether it’s through a donation or a handcrafted item to treasure, empowering kids around the world to create lasting change — in Jesus’ name! — sounds like the perfect gift. (Now if only I could give that gift of lasting change to my dad’s wardrobe …)

Reason #3: Get sustainable

Sustainable lifestyles are becoming fairly common. We’ve got our reusable shopping bags, our cloth coffee filters for our fair-trade coffee, and our metal straws. For Christians, though, caring about all kinds of sustainability isn’t just ethical, it’s also spiritual. Part of our Genesis 1:28 mandate, set up by God from the beginning, is a responsibility to care for the earth and its products, and, of course, people who make those products.

That’s why holistic community development work is one of the most sustainable things to give to. “Community development” is a fancy way to talk about poverty-busting projects that leave entire regions better than they started. As Christians, we want to make sure the way we spend our money upholds the dignity of all people — how better to do this than to equip them with the tools to break out of extreme poverty? (See Reason #5 for a real story of how this works!)

Reason #4: Make gratitude your lifestyle

Giving Tuesday’s all about keeping those good Thanksgiving vibes going, recognizing how much we have to be grateful for and sharing it with others. But you know what’s better than focusing on giving back for a day or a few weeks during the holidays? Making gratitude part of our everyday life by giving a recurring gift throughout the year. An easy way to do that? Use Giving Tuesday as a day to sign up to give a monthly gift to the charity (or charities!) that you care about.

Automatic giving is a simple step that does lots of good with our dollars. For a charity, it allows them to have a clearer picture of what to expect financially so they can build more accurate budgets to maximize their work throughout the year. For me, pausing to consider my own abundance motivates me to infuse the smallest parts of life with generosity. No gift is too small when it comes with a heart of gratitude and a desire to give back, so consider if God is calling you to take that next step of faith. A recurring gift to the World Vision Fund helps create lasting change around the world by meeting critical needs both today and tomorrow!

Reason #5: Join something bigger

Let’s take a trip to Yamaranguila, Honduras. Remember when I said community development is sustainable? This region is living proof of how people can transform their circumstances with the right tools. Only a couple decades ago, deep poverty, discrimination, and despair kept people in Yamaranguila down. But today, every family has clean water piped to their home. The Lenca Institute, a local high school, promotes Indigenous cultural values, including the importance of protecting the environment. Teenagers get support for university rather than dropping out of school. Kids are healthy, and their parents’ businesses are succeeding. The mayor, a former World Vision sponsored child, is dedicated to serving others, even receiving a national award recognizing Yamaranguila’s transformation.

Community members’ ownership of their development leads to lasting change like this. It’s work that’s possible with partnerships from generous donors and child sponsors who supported people in Yamaranguila. These donors have received the rare gift of seeing an entire community go from extreme poverty to health and hope in their lifetime. Who wouldn’t want to keep that gift going?

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For children in conflict-affected areas of the Middle East, the sounds of armed violence have become a tragic regular reality. Schools that once provided hope and stability are now closed, with classrooms turned into makeshift shelters. Thousands of displaced families face uncertainty every day.

Middle East crisis: Facts, FAQs, and how to help

Explore facts, and frequently asked questions about the crisis in the Middle East, and learn how you can help impacted communities.

• Fast facts: Middle East crisis
• How is the Middle East crisis affecting children?
• What is World Vision doing to help impacted families in the Middle East?
• How can I help the children and families affected by the crisis in the Middle East?

Fast facts: Middle East crisis

• In Lebanon:
  • More than 4 million people need humanitarian assistance.
  • Over 80% of Lebanon’s population lives in multidimensional poverty, struggling to access basic needs.
  • In some areas of Lebanon, half of children under age 2 experience severe food poverty.
  • Over 300 schools have been damaged from conflict.

• West Bank:
  • About 14,000 children are displaced.
  • Many schools in the West Bank are open only three days a week.
  • Health clinics are open just one day a week, with limited access to healthcare personnel and essential supplies.
  • 3 million children are at risk as the crisis worsens.

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How is the Middle East crisis affecting children?

Every child deserves to feel safe, to learn, and to grow up healthy. Right now, violence, poverty, and failing services are stealing those basic rights from far too many children. In some regions of Lebanon, more than half of children under 2 face severe food poverty, while nationwide nearly a third of children under 18 had just one meal or none the day before.

In the West Bank, frequent service interruptions mean that children often go without regular schooling or healthcare. Many experience stress, fear, and uncertainty about the future. When the basic structures that protect childhood break down, children lose the stability and opportunity that every young person deserves.

Children in Lebanon and the West Bank are growing up amid conditions that threaten their health, learning, and security. Families are struggling to find enough food, and many can no longer afford diverse or nutritious meals. In some regions of Lebanon, more than half of children under age 2 are affected by severe food poverty. Across the country, more than a third of children have one or fewer meals a day.

Education has also been disrupted. In the West Bank, many schools operate only three days a week, leaving children without consistent learning or the structure and stability that classrooms provide. Healthcare facilities are open one day a week, leaving communities vulnerable to illnesses with limited access to healthcare professionals and essential supplies.

The loss of essential needs such as food, safety, and stability places significant psychological strain on children, compounding the effects of ongoing conflict.

“The conflict is impacting children caught in this cycle of violence, hunger, and displacement. Behind each statistic is a story — stories of children and the families who want to keep them safe — enduring unimaginable fear, trauma, and loss,” says Margaret Schuler, senior vice president of International Programs for World Vision.

Such experiences can shape how children grow, learn, and dream long after the crisis ends.

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What is World Vision doing to help impacted families in the Middle East?

World Vision is working in both Lebanon and the West Bank to meet urgent needs while helping families recover and rebuild stronger communities for the future.

In Lebanon, World Vision reached over 589,000 people, including more than 217,000 children, through programs focused on education, protection, water, sanitation, and hygiene, food security, and cash assistance.

• 10.2 million meals delivered to families in need
• 24,700 blankets distributed
• 61,000 hygiene kits distributed
• 11,600 children received psychosocial support
• 934 shelters rehabilitated, including schools, homes, and health care centers, to help ensure dignified living conditions and access to essential services.​

In the West Bank, World Vision has reached more than 1 million people, including 430,000 children. The response includes five key components: emergency aid for communities affected by violence and displacement, mental health and psychosocial support, and protection initiatives that strengthen first responder capacity and improve access to health services and education.

• 10,700 people received cash or voucher assistance, allowing families to meet their most urgent needs
• 35,000 children have access to safe play and recreation areas where they can connect and play with others
• 28,000 children are participating in social and emotional learning activities that help build confidence and coping skills

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How can I help the children and families affected by the crisis in the Middle East?

Now more than ever, children in Lebanon and across the Middle East need our help. Every child deserves to feel safe, to learn, and to grow up healthy. Right now, violence, poverty, and failing services are stealing those basic rights from far too many children. ​Our staff and those we serve deeply appreciate the continued prayers of our donors and partners. Gifts to support these and other urgent relief efforts can be made to our Disaster Relief Fund.

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 Amy Van Drunen of World Vision in the United States contributed to this article. 

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