"Seeing the videos and the photographs is one thing, but actually being there in person and seeing the damage is quite another," a local senator said. "It's heartbreaking."

Hurricane Melissa brought devastation and death to the Caribbean as it tore through the region as one of the most powerful storms on earth in more than 150 years.

Former Hurricane Melissa left a trail of devastation in the Caribbean as authorities surveyed damage and counted the dead.

Follow live updates on Hurricane Melissa as the death toll reaches 38 people. Recovery efforts are underway in Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

The Jamaican government has begun to reach the communities most devastated by Hurricane Melissa nearly a week after the historic storm made landfall and carved a path of immense destruction across

CORE, which has previous experience responding to storms in the Caribbean, has deployed air cargo ships of hygiene kits, tarps and essential relief supplies to Jamaica and is preparing to send resources to Haiti. The organization is accepting donations here.

Melissa killed dozens in Haiti when a river burst its banks and left tens of thousands without electricity in Jamaica.

Hurricane Melissa's confirmed death toll climbed to 49 on Thursday, according to official reports, after wreaking destruction across much of the northern Caribbean in recent days.

Hurricane Melissa has strengthened into a major Category 4 hurricane, with the possibility of intensifying to a Category 5 storm Sunday night, unleashing torrential rain and threatening to cause catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean,

Twin Isle, a locally owned Caribbean restaurant, is holding a fundraiser throughout November to support relief efforts following Hurricane Melissa.