Hurricane Melissa has made landfall in Jamaica as a Category 5 hurricane -- one of the most powerful hurricane landfalls on record in the Atlantic basin. Melissa is bringing catastrophic winds, rain and storm surge to Jamaica, where residents and tourists are sheltering in place.

As of 5 p.m. Monday, the National Hurricane Center found the hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 175 mph. The winds were so strong inside the eyewall of the storm that a NOAA Hurricane Hunter plane made the rare choice to head back early after experiencing severe turbulence.

The storm hit 75 mph winds to attain hurricane status on Saturday afternoon, the National Hurricane Center said. A tropical storm becomes a hurricane when its winds reach 74 mph. Melissa is set to become a major hurricane before the end of the weekend.

Hurricane Melissa barreled toward eastern Cuba, where it was expected to make landfall as a major storm early Wednesday after pummeling Jamaica as one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record

Hurricane Melissa is set to pummel Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to lash the island since recordkeeping began 174 years ago