Overview:
Hurricane Melissa has moved away from Haiti, but damage lingers: 24 people are dead, 18 missing, and hundreds displaced. With red alerts still in place, residents and local leaders call for government action and support.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — Hurricane Melissa is moving away from Haiti, but parts of the country remain under red alert according to Civil Protection due to ongoing heavy rains that could cause flooding, landslides, and high waves. The hurricane’s passage through Haiti has resulted in 24 deaths, 18 people missing, and around twenty injured, according to a provisional report on Oct. 30.
Officials report 20 dead, including 10 children, in the West Department commune from historic storm
The commune of Petit-Goâve in the West-Department alone recorded 20 deaths in the overflowing La Digue River and two more in Fontamara due to a landslide. In the Sud-Est department, one person died in Marigot after a tree fell, while another death was reported in the Artibonite region. Residents are calling on the Haitian government to come to their aid in the face of damage caused by the hurricane.
A pedestrian looks a at flooded car in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa in Petit-Goave, Haiti, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph),
“Water entered my home, I couldn’t sleep, and up until now I have been fleeing from the sea,” an unnamed resident of the commune of Les Irois after the hurricane told Kreyasyon Plis, a Haiti-based content creator. “We are telling the government that we need help here to continue living because we are devastated.”
“Many of us fishermen have lost everything; all our belongings were swept away by the sea,” a fisherman from Les Irois said. “The wind destroyed several trees, especially behind the houses, as the sea advanced over us in a devastating way.”
“Water entered my home, I couldn’t sleep… we need help here to continue living because we are devastated.”
Resident of Les Irois
In addition to the loss of life, Hurricane Melissa also damaged homes, vehicles, livestock, crops, and roads across Haiti. According to Civil Protection, 1,156 families have been affected, 1,657 people are currently in temporary shelters, and 506 homes have been flooded.
A an pushes a wheelbarrow through a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa in Petit-Goave, Haiti, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph),
Meanwhile, Melissa has re-strengthened into a Category 2 storm as it continues moving northeast toward the open Atlantic, after making landfall in the Bahamas on Wednesday evening as a Category 1. Earlier in the week, the hurricane slammed into Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm with 185 mph winds—one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record—before weakening as it passed over Cuba.
Haiti, though not directly in Melissa’s path, felt its devastation rather severely and has recorded the highest number of fatalities in the region so far. The Dominican Republic reported one death and one person missing, while Jamaica confirmed at least six deaths.
The Haitian Hydrometeorological Unit (UHM) has issued red alerts for heavy rain in Grand’Anse, Nippes, and Sud departments, and orange alerts for high waves. Ouest remains under orange alert for both rain and waves, while Sud-Est is also on red alert for rain. The UHM said it will continue issuing live updates on the storm’s lingering impacts.
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