Travelers are finally starting to come home from Jamaica, Cuba and other islands that were impacted by the major hurricane earlier this week.

A rescue plane with more than two dozen Floridians who were in Jamaica landed at Tampa International Airport on Saturday – days after Hurricane Melissa struck the Caribbean island, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

Hurricane Melissa is expected to continue strengthening and become a Category 5 hurricane, according to the NHC, Saturday, Oct. 25.

CBS News Miami has been in touch with families living through the aftermath, including Marvin Edwards, who rode out the hurricane in Montego Bay.

Historic, life-threatening flash flooding and landslides are expected in portions of Jamaica, southern Haiti and the Dominican Republic through the weekend, the NHC said. Peak storm surge heights could reach 9 to 13 feet above normal tide levels in Jamaica, accompanied by large and powerfully destructive waves.

Hurricane Melissa, the most powerful storm of the 2025 Atlantic season, made landfall in Jamaica Tuesday as possibly its worst storm in recorded history.

Forecasters said the colossal amount of rain dropped on parts of Florida east and north of Orlando was comparable to what the region saw from a hurricane in 2022, underscoring the state's vulnerability to extreme weather far beyond the tropical storms that brew offshore.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the safe evacuation of 28 Floridians from Jamaica following the devastation of Category 5 Hurricane Melissa.