Major flooding that killed 10 people in central Vietnam this week also turned streets in Hoi An into canals on Thursday after a major river reached a 60-year high, authorities said.
In the north coast parish of St. Ann, almost all residents are without power -- and many of them woke up without a roof over their heads after Hurricane Melissa tore through Jamaica, downing trees, utility poles and anything in its path.
A demolished church, roofs blown off homes, shattered windows and debris-strewn, impassable roads: Hurricane Melissa dealt a direct hit to Jamaica's southwestern coastal communities that face a long haul picking up the pieces.
A downgraded Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Cuba early on Wednesday after ripping a path of destruction across Jamaica, which authorities have designated a "disaster area."
Flooding triggered by record heavy rains in central Vietnam this week killed at least four people and inundated more than 100,000 homes, the environment ministry said on Wednesday.
Hurricane Melissa picked up strength as it bore down on Cuba, where it is expected to make landfall Wednesday after ripping a path of destruction through Jamaica as one of the most powerful hurricanes on record there, lashing the island nation with brutal winds and torrential rain.
Under sheets of rain and laden with possessions, residents of southeast Cuba fled inland Tuesday -- escaping the peril of the coast before Hurricane Melissa's arrival.
