Hurricane Melissa claims at least 30 lives in Caribbean

By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) – At least 30 people have died, including 25 in Haiti, due to powerful Hurricane Melissa, after devastating another Caribbean country, CNN reported on Wednesday.

Melissa caused the La Digue River to overflow, resulting in flooding in southern Haiti, killing 25 people.

Jean Bertrand Subreme, mayor of the coastal town of Petit-Goave in southern Haiti, reported that the river flooded nearby homes, killing over two dozen people.

As of Wednesday morning, dozens of houses had been destroyed, and many people were still trapped under the debris, according to Subreme, who has asked the government for help with rescue operations.

Jamaica, also hit by Melissa, has evacuated approximately 25,000 people to shelters.

A Jamaican government official said the administration is currently unable to confirm any deaths related to the storm

Although three people were reported dead in Jamaica while preparing for the storm, officials have yet to release an official death toll since the hurricane hit the island on Tuesday.

"We have not had alerts of any deaths so far. So we cannot presume that there are deaths," Local Government and Community Development Minister Desmond McKenzie told a press conference.

The hurricane's eye passed over Jamaica's rural western parishes, but the capital city, Kingston, was spared the storm's most severe impact.