Hurricane Melissa Ties Historic Atlantic Wind Records and Sets Global Gust Benchmark

Miami, Wednesday, 25 February 2026.
The National Hurricane Center has officially confirmed that Hurricane Melissa, which struck in October 2025, tied the record for the strongest sustained winds in Atlantic history at 190 mph. In a startling revelation for meteorologists and risk analysts alike, the post-storm analysis verified a wind gust of 252 mph near Jamaica—the highest ever recorded in a tropical cyclone worldwide. This atmospheric violence resulted in catastrophic economic devastation, costing Jamaica an estimated $8.8 billion, equivalent to 41% of its GDP. These figures not only rewrite the record books but also serve as a stark indicator of increasing climatic volatility, necessitating immediate reassessments in disaster recovery planning and insurance risk modeling for vulnerable coastal regions.