Hurricane Melissa's confirmed death toll has climbed to 49 after the storm wreaked destruction across much of the northern Caribbean.Haiti reported at least 30 deaths with 20 people missing, after the slow-moving hurricane brought days of torrential rain to the island.

Hurricane Hunters were forced to cut short their reconnaissance mission into the Category 5 Hurricane Melissa Monday morning, Oct. 27.

Don’t be fooled – there’s still time for major activity this season. Category 5 Hurricane Melissa, the strongest-ever storm to hit Jamaica, had winds topping 185 mph and could have turned toward the Sunshine State.

After weakening to a Category 1 hurricane after its passage across the rugged terrain of eastern Cuba, by Wednesday afternoon Melissa was recovering over the waters around the speckled islands of the southeastern Bahamas.

The rapidly intensifying Category 5 storm is threatening the northern Caribbean with torrential rain, deadly flooding and widespread power outages.