Hurricane Melissa, the strongest storm ever recorded to hit Jamaica, made landfall in Cuba early Wednesday bringing winds of 120 mph and catastrophic damage. Cuban authorities evacuated over 735,000 residents from the island’s eastern provinces as President Miguel Díaz-Canel warned of “significant damage.” The storm had earlier battered Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane with winds up to 185 mph, leaving widespread destruction across the island. Now downgraded to a Category 3, Melissa continues to threaten the Caribbean with life-threatening floods and storm surges, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.