Hurricane Melissa's death toll climbed to 46 people on Friday, days after the record-breaking storm barreled through the Caribbean and left behind a wake of destruction.

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Cuba overnight after battering Jamaica as one of the most powerful landfalling storms in Atlantic basin history.

Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba were assessing the damage and beginning to dig out after they were slammed by Hurricane Melissa, which left dozens dead.

The storm will hit Bermuda on Thursday afternoon or evening, after Jamaica faced the devastation from one of the most powerful storms ever recorded.

Hurricane Melissa has hit southwestern Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, causing heavy flooding and wind damage.

Scientists say hurricanes are intensifying faster with greater frequency as a result of warming ocean waters caused by greenhouse gas emissions.

Hurricane Melissa is on track to pass through the southeastern islands of the Bahamas, which are sparsely populated compared to the islands in the north of the archipelago. The two islands that are in the storm’s direct path, Crooked Island and Long Island, have a total population of just a few thousand people.

CBS News Miami has been in touch with families living through the aftermath, including Marvin Edwards, who rode out the hurricane in Montego Bay.