SANTIAGO DE CUBA, Cuba -- Hurricane Melissa made landfall in eastern Cuba near the city of Chivirico early Wednesday as a Category 3 storm after pummeling Jamaica as one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Hurricane Melissa

Hundreds of thousands of people had been evacuated to shelters in Cuba. A hurricane warning was in effect for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo, Holguin and Las Tunas.

Early Wednesday, Melissa had top sustained winds of 120 mph (193 kph) and was moving northeast at 10 mph (16 kph) according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The hurricane was centered 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Chivirico and about 60 miles (97 kilometers) west-southwest of Guantánamo, Cuba.

Melissa was forecast

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