A terrifying “monster” is churning in the ocean, a colossal weather system that has rapidly intensified into the most powerful storm seen anywhere on the planet this year. This is Hurricane Melissa, a name that will now be synonymous with fear, as it has officially exploded into a dreaded Category 5 storm. Experts and meteorologists are watching its satellite signature with a sense of awe and dread, as footage from inside the storm itself has revealed a level of power that is difficult to comprehend. The storm, which has already been linked to six tragic events during its rampage through the Caribbean, is now taking aim at the nation of Jamaica, which is bracing for what is being called the strongest hurricane in its recorded history.

On the ground in Kingston, Jamaica, the capital city, a sense of grim preparation is underway. The air is thick with tension as the outer bands of the storm begin to lash the coast. Reporters on the scene describe a city that is mostly quiet, but the signs of an impending catastrophe are everywhere. Along the waterfront, the waters are usually full of fishing boats. Today, they are all gone. Fishermen have scrambled to pull their vessels from the water, dragging them onto the shore and tying them down, hoping against hope that the storm surge and massive waves don’t reach high enough to reclaim their livelihoods. The infrastructure, even in protected areas, is already being battered by winds so strong that debris can be heard banging and scraping through the streets.

What makes Hurricane Melissa exceptionally dangerous is not just its raw power, but its horrifying lack of speed. This is not a storm that will hit and move on. It is crawling at a sluggish 5 miles per hour, a terrifyingly slow pace that means it will linger over the island for hours on end, unleashing a prolonged and agonizing period of destruction. When a hurricane moves this slowly, the wind becomes a secondary threat. The real catastrophe is the water. The storm is predicted to unleash intense, catastrophic flash floods and trigger devastating landslides across the an entire nation.

The rainfall predictions are almost unbelievable, painting a picture of a biblical-level deluge. Forecasters are warning that the storm will drop a staggering 25 inches of rain, with some models showing that the eastern half of the island could receive between 50 and 75 centimeters over four days. Mountainous regions in the interior could be hit with an unthinkable 100 centimeters of rain. To put that figure in context, the city of London, England, receives only 62 centimeters of rain in an entire year. Hurricane Melissa is threatening to drop nearly double that amount in a matter of days. This is not just a flood; it is an event that could reshape the very geography of the island.

Perhaps the most chilling and surreal perspective of the storm has come from the “Hurricane Hunters,” a team of experts who performed the harrowing task of flying a specialized aircraft directly into the eyewall of the Category 5 monster. Their footage reveals a terrifying scene, showing a cockpit being shaken violently as they punch through the wall of 174-mile-per-hour winds. And then, suddenly, they are inside the eye. The footage shows an “eerie quiet,” a perfect circle of calm, blue sky surrounded by a colossal, stadium-like wall of spinning clouds. It is a frighteningly beautiful and peaceful view from the very center of the most violent place on Earth.

This is the new reality of our planet’s weather. As the video’s narrator explained, the storms of today are “abnormal” and no longer follow the predictable rules of the past. Storms can now suddenly weaken, or, as in Melissa’s case, explode in strength with terrifying speed. The satellite images show a “frightening picture,” a “monster on the move” churning up the Caribbean Sea. For the people of Jamaica, all they can do now is take cover and hope to endure an event that promises to be one of the most intense and destructive storms of the modern era.