Before the storm barreled north over Cuba, at least seven people died across the Caribbean as the storm approached Jamaica. See the storm's impact on Cuba.

Hurricane Melissa brought hurricane-force gusts to Bermuda overnight and will weaken as it heads north, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Maps show its forecast path.

By Dave Sherwood HAVANA/KINGSTON (Reuters) -Hurricane Melissa slammed into Cuba early on Wednesday, hours after causing devastation in neighboring Jamaica as the strongest-ever storm on record to hit that Caribbean island nation.

Hurricane Melissa is slamming eastern Cuba on Wednesday morning, Oct. 29, after hammering Jamaica on Tuesday and causing widespread damage.

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

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department had issued a formal Declaration of Humanitarian Assistance for Cuba, where U.S. government aid is rare.

Officials continue to assess the full extent of the devastation wrought by Melissa, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms ever to make landfall.

Category 5 Hurricane Melissa made landfall on Jamaica Tuesday morning as the most powerful hurricane to ever strike the island, as well as the third-strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic.

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.

In the last 25 years, a total of 10 major hurricanes have lashed the island. “Cuba is right in the center of things,” a weather historian said.

Hurricane Melissa has devastated Jamaica, causing severe damage to fishing and farming communities. Prince Davis, a fisherman, discovered his boat and home were destroyed while he was in Nicaragua.