See drone footage capture the scope of Hurricane Melissa's destruction across Jamaica. | USA TODAY

Drone footage reveals the catastrophic aftermath of Hurricane Melissa on Jamaica’s western coast, where entire communities have been either demolished or isolated. | ABC7NY

Footage shows the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa after it hit Jamaica, causing widespread damage to homes and infrastructure. Melissa roared ashore near the country’s southwestern town of New Hope, packing sustained winds of up to 295km/h, according to the US National Hurricane Center. This is well above the minimum 252km/h wind speed of a Category 5 storm, the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale. In southwestern Jamaica, the parish of St Elizabeth was left “underwater,” an official s

Hurricane Melissa left a luxury hotel resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, with damaged ceilings and water leaks after making landfall on the island. One vacationer, who took footage of inside the hotel, acknowledged the hard work of the staff and the building staying mostly intact. "All this hotel held up fantastically in a Cat 5," the woman said. "Hats off to obviously the building, but more so, obviously God, but the staff were fantastic." Ahead of the storm's landfall on Tuesday, officials urged