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Finally, my video: Hurricane MELISSA at Ground Zero.

#MELISSA was the most epic chase of my career—and the most intense #hurricane I’ve witnessed. So, I gave it the grand, full-length documentary treatment. I was on the island of #Jamaica for 10 days, and this video brings you with me through that whole odyssey—getting to the island, slowly closing in on my prey, nailing the core of this nuclear-grade Category 5, and then many days living in the aftermath. Instead of just doing highlights, I wanted to make something complete—something that has chase strategy (for chaserdudes), minute-by-minute footage of the storm’s progress (for meteorologists to analyze), high-octane eyewall footage (for adrenaline junkies), survivors’ tales (for those who want the personal angle), and extensive documentation of the aftermath in multiple towns (for those interested in societal impacts).

But, most of all, I hope this video serve as a useful historical document for Jamaicans—an up-close and detailed record of this truly cataclysmic event in their nation’s history.

Regarding MELISSA’s winds… I feel convinced these are the highest winds I’ve personally witnessed or filmed—or heard. (The screaming sound as the storm peaked was harsh and painful, driving the people with me to hold their ears.) Big shoutout to the tall, hearty palm in front of the hotel. It served as a wind meter, showing its relative speed and direction. Without that tree, the eyewall footage would have just looked like dense clouds blowing past an airplane window. That tree shows the POWER—the way it bends in the really big, scary gusts. Eventually, though, things get so crazy you can’t even see the tree—it just disappears into the screaming white void. These winds were truly fierce. They even took down concrete buildings—obliterating the entire second floor of the concrete building across the street from my hotel. God knows what velocities some of those especially screamy gusts reached—but I’m grateful I was in a solid structure with thick walls.

So… If you want to come on a tough chase with a veteran chaserdude, sit back and enjoy this video from the beginning. If you just want to see the storm, start at Chapter 4: The Approach. And if you want to cut straight to the chocolate cake without eating your dinner (like a child), go right to Chapter 5: The Cataclysm. That’s the eyewall.

There you have it. Video link in the comments!

This looks to be the most in-depth documentary he's done, up there with Haiyan and Dorian. There are maybe a handful of people on the planet who have experienced as many of the most powerful storms in the absolute worst locations as Josh. He seems to have put a lot into this one, with a nearly two hour video.

This post was edited on 12/15/25 at 9:10 pm