Roughly 1,000 military personnel and families have been flown to Pensacola ahead of the Category 4 storm that has killed at least seven people in Jamaica.

Melissa is only the fifth Atlantic hurricane on record to achieve sustained winds of 185 m.p.h. or greater, joining the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935, Hurricane Gilbert (1988), Hurricane Wilma (2005) and Hurricane Dorian (2019).

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A Sarasota County flight crew prepares to deliver relief supplies to Jamaica later this week as catastrophic Hurricane Melissa slams the island.

Footage from a U.S. Air Force weather reconnaissance flight that passed through Hurricane Melissa’s eye confirms you probably don’t want to be there. The U.S. Defense Department released the video after flying multiple passes through the Category 5 storm on Monday to collect weather data for the National Hurricane Center.

Donna Lee Gordon, a U.S. tourist visiting Jamaica, spoke with NBC News’ Kate Snow about her experience sheltering from Hurricane Melissa in Kingston, Jamaica.

Historic, life-threatening flash flooding and landslides are expected in portions of Jamaica, southern Haiti and the Dominican Republic through the weekend, the NHC said. Peak storm surge heights could reach 9 to 13 feet above normal tide levels when the storm makes landfall, accompanied by large and powerfully destructive waves.