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Even though Tropical Storm Melissa has started drifting east-southeast over the Caribbean Sea, Jamaica remains under a Tropical Storm Warning and a Hurricane Watch as the system continues to pose a serious threat to the island.

According to the Meteorological Service of Jamaica (Met Service), reconnaissance aircraft this morning found that the storm was about 300 kilometres southeast of Kingston and moving slowly.

At 7:00 a.m., Melissa's centre was located near latitude 15.9 degrees North, longitude 75.0 degrees West. The system is expected to drift north later today before turning back toward the west on Saturday, bringing it just south of Jamaica by early next week.

Melissa is packing maximum sustained winds of 75 km/h (45 mph), and forecasters say it could strengthen into a hurricane by Saturday, and possibly a major hurricane by Sunday.

The Met Service warned that the storm is expected to dump between 200 and 350 millimetres (8-14 inches) of rain across eastern parishes this weekend, which could trigger flooding and landslides.

As the system moves closer, Jamaicans are being urged to prepare for strong, gusty winds reaching tropical storm force by later today, especially in eastern parishes. Hurricane-force winds could begin affecting the island as early as Saturday.

Small craft operators, including fishers from the cays and banks, are advised to stay in safe harbour until all warnings are lifted.

The Met Service says it continues to closely monitor Melissa's progress and is urging the public to pay close attention to official updates.

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