Only 81 hurricanes have struck as Category 4 or higher since 1851, or about one every other year on average. A couple have crippled multiple points at that strength. Irma, in 2017, managed to hit five countries as a Category 4 or 5 — the most of any storm in the Atlantic.

Melissa has already killed three people in Haiti and Jamaica each and one person in the Dominican Republic. United Nations staff are preparing to deploy to Cuba and Jamaica this week as the region nervously awaits landfall of Hurricane Melissa.