Hurricane Melissa makes historic landfall in Jamaica
ROANOKE, Va. – Hurricane Melissa became a record-breaking storm Tuesday as it made landfall near New Hope, Jamaica. At its strongest, the storm reached winds of 185 miles per hour with a central pressure of 892 millibars, marking one of the lowest pressures ever recorded for a landfalling hurricane. 10 News’s meteorologist shared that the devastation on Jamaica is severe, describing the situation as “pure decimation.”
After making landfall, Melissa weakened to a Category 4 hurricane, with top winds at 145 miles per hour as it moved north-northeast at 8 miles per hour. The hurricane is now projected to make another landfall in eastern Cuba, move near the southeastern Bahamas, and could approach Bermuda this weekend. There is no expected impact for Southwest or Central Virginia from Melissa at this time.
Cool, cloudy, and wet in Southwest and Central Virginia
While all eyes are on the Caribbean, folks closer to home are feeling an early taste of late fall weather. It’s a mostly dry Tuesday evening through much of the New River Valley, Roanoke, and Lynchburg, with just a few light showers showing up east of Highway 29, including parts of Appomattox, Charlotte, and Halifax counties.
Tuesday was marked with more dreary weather: the farther east you went, the wetter it’s been, while areas west stayed much drier.
Tonight is expected to be pretty cloudy and mainly dry for most, though spotty drizzle, fog, and a stray shower can’t be ruled out tonight or Wednesday morning.
Wednesday looks cool and cloudy with highs topping out between 49 and 54 degrees, depending on your area. The first two-thirds of the day look mainly dry, but showers are forecast to return around dinnertime and ramp up in a big way Wednesday night. Expect a soaking rain through the night, with showers tapering off earlier than first anticipated by Thursday morning.
Some wraparound moisture may keep a rogue shower or two near the mountains closer to dinner Thursday, but clearing skies are forecast for most spots later in the day.
Halloween and the week ahead
After rain exits Thursday, the sun is expected to break through for the afternoon. Friday is Halloween, and the forecast currently calls for dry weather—good news for any outdoor plans.
The weekend is forecast to be mostly dry, with temperatures climbing to the upper 50s and near 60 degrees. A mix of sun and clouds is in the forecast on both Saturday and Sunday. Rain returns to the area Monday, before drying out again by Tuesday.
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