Follow live updates on Hurricane Melissa as the death toll reaches 38 people. Recovery efforts are underway in Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic storms on record, has carved a devastating path through the Caribbean this week.

People across the northern Caribbean were digging out from the destruction of Hurricane Melissa​ on Thursday as deaths from the catastrophic storm climbed.

South Florida was spared a direct blow from Hurricane Melissa, but the massive storm still hit home for the millions of residents there who have deep roots in the Caribbean.

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in southwest Jamaica this week near the coastal town of Black River, which the government has described as “ground zero.”

Officials have reported deaths in multiple areas as Hurricane Melissa slammed parts of the Caribbean this week.

Hurricane Melissa's deadly spin is visible from space. Satellite footage caught the hurricane in rotation on Tuesday (Oct. 28) as it wreaked destruction across the Caribbean. Imagery from the GOES-19 satellite shows "mesovortices" surrounding the hole, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).