Hurricane Melissa has strengthened into a major Category 3 hurricane, unleashing torrential rain and threatening to cause catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean, including Haiti and Jamaica

Tropical Storm Melissa strengthened Friday afternoon and is likely to become a major hurricane by the start of next week.

Tropical Storm Melissa was nearly stationary in the central Caribbean on Friday, with forecasters warning that it could strengthen and swipe Jamaica as a powerful hurricane and dump a staggering amount of rain -- up to 35 inches -- on southwest Haiti,

Tropical Storm Melissa is expected to bring days of heavy rain" to the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica and may trigger "life-threatening flash flooding, the National Hurricane Center says.

Officials across the Caribbean prepare for days of heavy rain from the storm.

A Haitian-American couple is celebrating bringing home their two adopted children from Port-au-Prince after a two-year journey.

Tropical Storm Melissa is close to hurricane strength Saturday morning, forecast to rapidly intensify close to a Category 5 storm, but moving slowly while dumping “catastrophic”