Note: This is largely a remake of Hurricane Melissa (2019).
- This article is about the Atlantic hurricane of 2025. For other storms of the same name, see List of storms named Melissa.
| Category 5 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
 Hurricane Melissa at peak intensity south of Bermuda on October 20 | |
| Formed | October 3, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | October 15, 2025 |
| (Extratropical after October 14) | |
| Highest winds | 1-minute sustained: 165 mph (270 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 922 mbar (hPa); 27.23 inHg |
| Fatalities | 81 total |
| Damage | $27.67 billion (2025 USD) |
| Areas affected | Lesser Antilles, Bermuda, East Coast of the United States (especially North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia), Eastern Canada |
| Part of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Hurricane Melissa was a powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Carolinas in October 2025. The fifteenth named storm, eighth hurricane, and the fourth and final major hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, Melissa originated from a tropical wave that emerged off the coast of Africa in October 2025. The wave steadily organized, developing into a tropical deperssion on October 3. The system gradually strengthened, becoming a tropical storm the next day. Despite initially encountering unfavorable conditions, Melissa unexpectedly intensified on October 5–7, reaching Category 3 intensity. Soon afterwards, the system weakened into a Category 2 hurricane due to interaction with a high-pressure system, but reintensified into a Category 3 hurricane on October 9 after encountering more favorable conditions. Melissa continued rapidly intensifying as it turned to the west, becoming a Category 5 hurricane mid-day on October 10. The storm soon afterwards sustained its intensity as a high-end Category 4 hurricane, briefly reaching Category 5 status for six hours on October 12, before making landfall in North Carolina later that day, rapidly weakening as it moved inland. Melissa degenerated into a post-tropical cyclone over New York on October 14, before dissipating over the Labrador Sea the next day.
Meteorological history
Map plotting the storm's track and intensity, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
Tropical storm (39–54 mph, 63–87 km/h)
Category 1 (74–95 mph, 119–153 km/h)
Category 2 (96–110 mph, 154–177 km/h)
Category 3 (111–129 mph, 178–208 km/h)
Category 4 (130–156 mph, 209–251 km/h)
Category 5 (≥157 mph, ≥252 km/h)
Extratropical cyclone / remnant low, tropical disturbance, or monsoon depression