Hurricane Melissa rapidly intensified into a Category 4 storm Sunday morning as it churned toward Jamaica, where residents were urged to "seek shelter now."

The big picture: At least three deaths in Haiti and a fourth in the Dominican Republic were attributed to Melissa when it was a tropical storm and Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness implored residents Sunday to "avoid taking unnecessary risks," with the Caribbean island nation expected to take a direct hit this week — potentially as a Category 5 hurricane.

Threat level: "Additional intensification is forecast over the next day or so, followed by fluctuations in intensity," the National Hurricane Center warned in a Sunday evening forecast discussion. • It's "expected to be a powerful major hurricane when making landfall in Jamai

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