Updated Tuesday, October 28, 2025 @ 3 PM EDT 

Hurricane Melissa made land fall in Jamacia just after 1:00 EDT, as one the most powerful hurricane landfalls in the Atlantic basin. Hurricane winds at 165 miles per hour are battering the area and the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida reports that Melissa is expected to bring rainfall of 15 to 30 inches to portions of Jamaica and additional rainfall of 6 to 8 inches with localized maximum to 12 inches for southern Hispaniola through Wednesday, with storm total local maxima of 40 inches possible.

The Hurricane Watch Network (HWN) is active on 14.325.00 MHz (USB). The VoIP Hurricane Net is also  and are expected to remain active until late Wednesday evening. As, the storm heads towards CUBA, The National Emergency Network of the Cuban Radio Amateur Federation (REN-FRC in Spanish) is also  active through station CO9DCN, from the National Civil Defense Staff.

Amateur radio operators are continuing to monitor the weather nets and are relaying information, as necessary.

The Jamaica Observer newspaper reports that in Kingston, over 6,000 Jamaicans have taken refuge in 382 shelters

ARRL will have updates as the situation develops and Hurricane Melissa continues its path northwestward.

Updated Tuesday, October 28, 2025 @ 7 AM EDT 

Hurricane Melissa, now a category 5 storm,  is expected to make landfall in Jamaica today, across southeastern Cuba Wednesday morning, and across the southeastern or central Bahamas later on Wednesday. Conditions are deteriorating on Jamaica with catastrophic winds, flash flood, and storm surge.

The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) and The VoIP Hurricane Net were activated on Monday and are expected to remain active until late Wednesday evening. The National Emergency Network of the Cuban Radio Amateur Federation (REN-FRC in Spanish) is also  active through station CO9DCN, from the National Civil Defense Staff. Cuba. WX4NHC, the amateur radio station at the National Hurricane Center, was activated Monday evening, October 27 at 7 PM EDT.

Amateur radio operators are monitoring the weather nets and are relaying information, as necessary.

ARRL will have updates through the day as Melissa makes landfall Tuesday afternoon.

Updated Monday, October 27, 2025 @ 9 AM EDT (1300 UTC)

ARRL thanks Carlos Alberto Santamaría González, CO2JC, for information included in this update.

CUBA: NATIONAL EMERGENCY NETWORK WILL BE ACTIVATED THIS MONDAY, WITH NETWORKS ALREADY ACTIVATED IN EASTERN PROVINCES

Forecasts indicate Hurricane Melissa will affect Cuba, especially its eastern region.

Starting at noon today (Monday, October 27), the National Emergency Network of the Cuban Radio Amateur Federation (REN-FRC in Spanish) will be activated through station CO9DCN, from the National Civil Defense Staff.

Several amateur radio emergency networks have been active in the eastern part of the country for more than 72 hours, according to personal communications we have received from the presidents of the provincial branches of Las Tunas, Granma, and Santiago de Cuba.

In addition to the frequencies established in each municipality for communications on the 2m band, the following national emergency frequencies established in our regulations will be in use:

40m band: 7110 and 7120 kHz.
80m band: 3720 and 3740 kHz.

For this reason, we ask all Cuban and regional radio amateurs, to protect these frequencies, remain listening only, and refrain from transmitting on them unrelated to the emergency.

Cuban radio amateurs, despite the technical and battery difficulties we face, will once again emphasize the importance of radio communications in emergency situations.

For everyone, always, the main recommendation will be to protect their lives and only then maintain communications.

Carlos Alberto Santamaría González, CO2JC
Coordinator of the National Emergency Network (REN-FRC)

Updated Sunday, October 26, 2025 @ 3:15 PM EDT (1915 UTC)

ARRL thanks WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio Station at the National Hurricane Center, and the Hurricane Watch Net (www.hwn.org) for this update.

Hurricane Melissa Update and Hurricane Watch Nets Ready for Activation

Hurricane Melissa is expected to move near or over Jamaica on Tuesday, across southeastern Cuba Tuesday night, and across the southeastern Bahamas on Wednesday. Melissa is expected to be a powerful major hurricane when making landfall in Jamaica and Cuba.

WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio Station at the National Hurricane Center, will be activated on Monday, October 27 at 7 PM EDT for Hurricane Melissa forecast track affecting Jamaica, Cuba, and the Bahamas. The station expects to be active until Wednesday. The exact timing may vary depending on the Hurricane’s track and speed. WX4NHC will be on the air on the Hurricane Watch Net frequency 14.325 MHz most of the time and 7.268 MHz depending on propagation; http://www.hwn.org. WX4NHC will be on the VoIP Hurricane Net (IRLP node 9219 / EchoLink WX-TALK Conference node 7203); http://www.voipwx.net/

WX4NHC will be monitoring WinLink and online reports; WX4NHC@winlink.org use //WL2K in email subject. Please send or relay any surface reports (weather data, flooding, damage) to the Hurricane Nets or using any of the available modes listed. WX4NHC On-line Hurricane Report Form Hurricane On-line Report Form (fiu.edu).

The VoIP Hurricane Net will activate at 8 AM EDT Monday morning through at least late Wednesday evening. The net, on *WX_TALK* Echolink conference node: 7203/IRLP 9219 system and other VoIP radio systems via the KC5FM-R node is supporting WX4NHC. Note during overnight hours and at other points in this three day period, they will be in an activation monitoring mode for any stations that call on the system as these areas can be difficult to have direct contact with given their infrastructure, etc. 

Any pictures or videos of wind damage, river/stream/urban/storm surge flooding etc. can be sent to our voipwxnet Facebook and Twitter feeds or the following email address: pics@nsradio.org and credit will be given to the Amateur Radio Operator, weather spotter or individual that took the photos and media and be shared with the Amateur Radio team at the National Hurricane Center and other agencies and outlets.

The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) shared an update on Sunday, October 26 at 3 PM EDT (1900 UTC), preparing to fully activate in response to this extremely dangerous system:

HWN Activation will begin Monday morning, 10:00 AM EDT (1400 UTC). Once on the air, operations will continue around the clock until stand‑down is called.

HWN Activation Plan – Monday Morning

• 20 m – 14.325 MHz (USB): Start at 10:00 AM EDT (1400 UTC); operate until evening propagation loss.
• 40 m – 7.268 MHz (LSB): Start at 7:00 PM EDT (2300 UTC); continue overnight as propagation allows. If 40m conditions hold through the night, operations will pause at 7:00 AM EDT Tuesday for the Waterway Net, then resume afterward as needed.

Tuesday through Friday (as needed):

• 20 m: Resume at 8:00 AM EDT (1200 UTC)
• 40 m: Resume at 7:00 PM EDT (2300 UTC)

Both bands may operate simultaneously if conditions warrant. Should the storm veer toward land earlier than forecast, HWN will shift to immediate activation.

Forward Operations

Once Melissa clears Jamaica, HWN will focus on collecting weather and damage reports from Cuba, the Bahamas, and the Turks & Caicos Islands. After each region passes, HWN will handle Emergency, Priority, Medical, and Health & Welfare traffic, with SATERN assisting as needed.

Reporting & Support

During activations, HWN collects and relays real-time or estimated weather data to the National Hurricane Center, including:

• Maximum sustained winds and gusts
• Wind direction and barometric pressure
• Rainfall amounts and duration
• Storm surge
• Damage assessments

HWN also provides Health and Welfare Traffic, and backup communications for Emergency Operations Centers, Red Cross shelters, and other agencies, sharing critical damage assessment information as requested.

Updates and changes to operational plans will be posted on www.hwn.org and HWN social media channels.

A special thanks to the amateur radio community and nets maintaining clear frequencies on 14.325 MHz and 7.268 MHz – your cooperation is vital in helping us serve those in harm’s way.
 

Updated Saturday, October 25, 2025 @ 7:00 PM EDT (2300 UTC)

ARRL thanks Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, and the Hurricane Watch Net (www.hwn.org) for this update.

Hurricane Watch Net Monitoring Hurricane Melissa

The information contained in this email is being shared with amateur radio networks, government and non-government agencies, and amateur radio news outlets.

The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) is closely monitoring Hurricane Melissa, currently located south of Hispaniola and Jamaica. The storm is nearly stationary, drifting west at approximately 3 mph, and is forecast to intensify to a Category 5 hurricane within 48 hours. Heavy rainfall is already affecting southern Hispaniola, causing life-threatening flooding and mudslides. Similar conditions are expected in Jamaica in the coming days.

Activation Status

Melissa is now a hurricane and well within our 300-mile activation criteria. For now, hurricane-force winds are forecast to remain offshore until Tuesday evening.

Normally, a Net activation is straightforward — we set a start time and an approximate end time. Melissa is not one of those storms. The closest comparisons are Matthew (2016) and Dorian (2019) — both stalled, high-intensity hurricanes that required flexible, around-the-clock operations for days.

Since hurricane-force winds remain offshore and the storm is expected to parallel the island of Jamaica, our tentative plan is to activate Monday morning at 8:00 AM EDT (1200 UTC) on 14.325 MHz, with 40-meter operations beginning at 7:00 PM EDT (2300 UTC). Depending on propagation and storm evolution, both frequencies may operate simultaneously. If the storm changes course toward land on Sunday, HWN will activate immediately.

Operational Frequencies

• 20 meters: 14.325 MHz (USB) – daytime operations
• 40 meters: 7.268 MHz (LSB) – nighttime operations (7:00 PM–7:00 AM EDT)

As a reminder, HWN also provides Health and Welfare Traffic, and backup communications for Emergency Operations Centers, Red Cross shelters, and other agencies, sharing critical damage assessment information as requested.

Updates and changes to operational plans will be posted on www.hwn.org and HWN social media channels.

HWN thanks all amateur radio operators and nets for maintaining clear frequencies, enabling timely communication to those in harm’s way.

Updated 10/24/2025

Important Notice: Emergency Frequencies — Keep Clear During Contest Weekend

As the Caribbean faces potential hurricane impacts, IARU Region 2 has activated emergency nets on the following frequencies:

• 40 meters: 7.198 MHz and 7.098 MHz
• 20 meters: 14.198 MHz

If the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) activates, they will be operating on:

• 14.325 MHz
• 7.268 MHz

The amateur radio station at the National Hurricane Center, WX4NHC, will also be monitoring the HWN frequencies for real-time weather and situation reports.

This weekend coincides with the CQ World Wide SSB Contest, one of the busiest times on the bands. All operators are urged to exercise extra vigilance and avoid transmitting on or near these emergency and hurricane watch frequencies.

These nets are providing critical communication links supporting the Caribbean Islands and affected regions. Please ensure they have clear and reliable access to designated frequencies.

In summary:

• Keep clear of 7.198, 7.098, 7.268, 14.198, and 14.325 MHz
• Be aware of possible emergency or health-and-welfare traffic on nearby frequencies
• Operate responsibly and help maintain open frequencies for those supporting hurricane response efforts.

Original news story, October 24, 2025:

All eyes and ears are on Tropical Storm Melissa, now in the Caribbean Sea. As of 6:30:00 AM EDT on Thursday October 23, 2025, the National Weather Service Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida reports that Melissa is crawling over the central Caribbean sea and is expected to bring heavy rains and life-threatening flooding  to portions of Hispaniola and Jamaica over the weekend.

A hurricane watch remains in effect for the southwestern peninsula of Haiti, from the border with the Dominican Republic to Port-Au-Prince. A tropical storm watch is in effect for Jamaica.

Currently melissa is located about 240 miles SSE Kingston Jamaica and about 300 miles from the SW Port of Au Prince Haiti. Maximum sustained winds are 50 miles per hour (mph) and the present movement is WNW at 3 mph.

“Melissa is definitely going to need to be watched. If it makes it into the Gulf, it could be a big problem,” said ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV.

The Hurricane Watch Net is carefully monitoring the storm’s development. While earlier appraisals weren’t certain of its direction, most of the projections now expect a turn to the northwest then north over the next few days. This puts Haiti and Jamaica in its sights later this week. Tropical storm-force winds extend to 115 miles from the center of the storm. 

According to the National Hurricane Center’s latest bulletin, hurricane conditions in Haiti might begin on Thursday, then in Jamaica Thursday and Friday. The greatest threat is heavy rainfall in Haiti and Dominican Republic with 5 to 10 inches expected through Friday. 

ARRL News will have any further updates as the storm progresses.