Hurricane Melissa has intensified into a category 4 hurricane, and could develop further to become a category 5 as it approaches Jamaica, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The hurricane is likely to bring life-threatening and catastrophic flash flooding and landslides to parts of the island nation — where a hurricane warning is in effect — as well as to southern Hispaniola, which is made up of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

A hurricane watch has been issued in Haiti, from its Eastern border with the Dominican Republic to the capital of Port-au-Prince.

The category 4 hurricane was moving at five miles per hour Sunday morning, with increased maximum sustained wind speeds reaching up to 140 miles per hour.

The storm's slow movement is expected to bring a deluge of rain to par

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