Hurricane Melissa made landfall along Jamaica's southwestern coast Tuesday as an extremely powerful Category 5 storm.

Satellite images show how Hurricane Melissa decimated entire neighborhoods after it made landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday.

Hurricane Melissa has rapidly intensified into a major Category 4 storm, producing maximum sustained wind speeds of 145 mph. If it maintains its strength, it could become the strongest hurricane to make landfall over the island since the National Hurricane Center started keeping records.

Melissa killed dozens in Haiti when a river burst its banks and left tens of thousands without electricity in Jamaica.

Hurricane Melissa has caused widespread destruction across the Caribbean, leaving at least seven dead and thousands more displaced and in the dark. The International Federation of the Red Cross previously said up to 1.

Hurricane Melissa— one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes ever recorded—is now off Cuba’s eastern coast, after leaving a trail of destruction across the large island and its much smaller neighbor, Jamaica.

The storm left widespread destruction and at least dozens of deaths in its path. In Chicago, people are looking for ways to help.

Most of Jamaica remains without power, as our correspondent reports floods, mudslides and "palm trees tossed like toothpicks".