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Tropical Storm the storm is projected to escalate to a rare Category 5 cyclone as it turns toward Jamaica, causing deadly rapid inundation and landslides.

The hurricane, which had winds of up to 195 km/h as of 0600 Greenwich Mean Time, is now shifting north-west in the Caribbean Sea and is anticipated to reach land by Tuesday, based on data from hurricane specialists.

Advisories of blackouts and disruption to utilities have been released as the hurricane produces up to 76cm of precipitation and storm surges as high as thirteen feet above typical tides. "Find safe refuge immediately," locals have been told.

This hurricane is the 13th named hurricane in the current Atlantic season, which typically ends in the eleventh month.

Highest-Level Storm Risk

A highest-level cyclone is the most intense classification, with wind speeds of at least 252 km/h.

Although the hurricane is projected to diminish in strength to a category four cyclone before arriving at Jamaica, experts said there was "very little practical difference in the general consequences" upon making contact with land, and that the hurricane will be "at least that intensity" when it strikes the country.

Urgent Preparations

With storm-force winds and rain already expected long before it passes over Jamaica's central region - possibly even the national capital - warnings state that "safety measures need to be finalized quickly".

"A multi-day period of harmful winds and torrential rain are underway and will cause severe and deadly rapid water accumulation and many rock slides," urged climate experts.

The country's head of government the official said: "I realize that there are countless citizens who are worried, who are extremely apprehensive, and with good reason: worry is natural.

"Yet the optimal approach to address worry and any nervousness and anxiety is to stay ready."

Locals are being advised to protect their properties with sandbags and plywood sheets, and to gather basic necessities.

Wider Effects

Warnings are also in effect for parts of the neighboring country such as the main city, Port au Prince, the adjacent nation and the eastern part of Cuba, where the hurricane is projected to bring analogous consequences by the middle portion of the coming week.

Rock slides presently generated by the storm have resulted in two fatalities in Haiti, according to emergency services.

Expected Course

The hurricane is forecast to move across the island nation by the middle of the week before traveling via the Caribbean archipelago and entering the Atlantic.

By the time it reaches Cuba, it is forecast to have weakened to a Category 3 hurricane.

Climate Background

While it is difficult to connect individual weather events to climate change, experts say it is causing meteorological events increasingly frequent and more extreme.

Warmer oceans generate additional humidity in the atmosphere, helping fuel the formation of storms.

Before the start of this season's Atlantic hurricane season, climate agencies predicted increased storm frequency, citing elevated ocean temperatures and likely enhanced seasonal rains around the western African continent - where Atlantic storms typically originate.