Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean are staring down what could become a catastrophic, days-long assault of extreme rainfall and damaging winds.

Jamaica has closed its two major international airports and activated more than 650 shelters as Hurricane Melissa, a Category 3 storm, approaches the island, threatening catastrophic flooding and landslides.

The storm sits 160 miles from Kingston, Jamaica and 325 miles from Port-Au-Prince, Haiti as of Saturday morning.

Jamaica's central location in the Caribbean, the island has never recorded a direct landfall from a Category 4 or 5 hurricane, according to records from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) dating back to 1850.