Emerging Truth: Climate Crisis Amplified Hurricane Melissa's Force, Analysis Reveals

Every aspect of Hurricane Melissa, the most powerful storm ever to hit Jamaica, was intensified by the climate change, scientific experts has found.

Melissa created widespread devastation when it crunched into Jamaica as a highest-level hurricane on October 28, with winds up to 185mph.

Winds of Melissa's strength are now significantly more likely due to the global warming, the research said.

The storm eliminated homes, businesses, crops and livelihoods, resulting in destruction estimated to be equivalent to around 33% of the island nation's GDP.

The hurricane forced the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people as it moved onward to impact Cuba, with its ferocious winds causing damage as far as the Dominican Republic and Haiti. A minimum of 61 people have perished as a result.

Research Findings

The savage strength of Melissa was exacerbated by warming atmosphere and seas, caused by greenhouse gases that are produced by the burning of petroleum products, an international team of scientists has determined.

Climate change boosted Melissa's maximum wind speeds by 7% and extreme rainfall by 16%, researchers found.

Occurrences such as the five-day period of torrential downpours in Jamaica from Melissa are now about 30% stronger and doubly possible due to present global warming, which is about 1.3 Celsius higher, globally, than the pre-industrial era.

Planetary warming has made the environmental and oceanic factors behind such extreme events six times more likely.

"What we see with Hurricane Melissa and additional modern monster storms is that they are growing so powerful that they will soon push millions of people past the boundaries of adaptation," stated a climate scientist.

"If we don't cease burning coal, oil and gas, we will see additional countries approaching these thresholds."

Rapid Intensification

Melissa is merely the newest case of a significant hurricane suddenly gaining intensity with remarkable rapidity. This "sudden escalation" was remarkably evident with this hurricane, with Melissa's gust strengths shooting up from 68mph to 139mph in a single day.

This process is a signature of a changing environment, scientists have discovered, with storms able to feed upon heat in the marine and atmospheric conditions to become more fierce.

Melissa crawled slowly over seas that were nearly 1.5C hotter than the typical temperature, gaining a overwhelming force it then directed toward Jamaica.

"Hurricane Melissa's devastating impact in Jamaica is not unusual, it is the canary in the coal mine," stated a university professor.

"When a storm can rapidly strengthen from 70 to 185mph in fewer than three days over ocean waters that are 1.5 degrees hotter than normal, we are observing the concerning current situation of our warming world."

Environmental Funding

The huge task of restoration and redevelopment from a storm that caused approximately $6 billion in losses to Jamaica has once more emphasized the vexed question of global climate funding.

For years, growing economies facing environmental threats have appealed to richer nations to contribute funds to help them with the climate disasters that these poorer nations have contributed minimally to.

Next week, countries will assemble for yearly global environmental negotiations to once more consider environmental funding.

"Industrialized states must honor their commitments and scale up climate support, acknowledging that adaptation is essential for the survival of coastal countries," he declared.

Contributions to a fund to aid threatened states are so far "highly deficient," officials have announced.