Hurricane Maria makes landfall in Dominica

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- Hurricane Maria has become a Category 5 storm, the highest classification.

- It made landfall in Dominica at around 0115 GMT.

- NHC said the storm posed a "potentially catastrophic" threat to Caribbean islands in its path.

Updated at 12:15 p.m. BJT (0215 GMT)

Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of Dominica, has been posting a series of increasingly concerning comments.

The PM said the storm has blown the roof off his home, adding, "I am at the complete mercy of the hurricane. House is flooding." He then added, "I have been rescued."

Updated at 9:40 a.m. BJT (0140 GMT)

Hurricane Maria has made landfall in Dominica as a Category 5 hurricane, reported the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Hurricane Maria on its way to Petit-Bourg, Guadeloupe island on September 18, 2017. /Reuters Photo‍

The storm touched down around 0115 GMT on Tuesday with top winds swirling at 160 miles per hour (260 km per hour), NHC said, citing radar data from Martinique and Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft.

Updated at 8:51 a.m. BJT (0051 GMT)

Hurricane Maria has become a category five storm, the highest classification, as it was bearing down on the Caribbean island of Dominica, NHC said.

The "potentially catastrophic" hurricane was about 15 miles (25 km) east-southeast of Dominica, with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph (260 km per hour), according to the NHC.

"Some additional strengthening is possible tonight, but some fluctuations in intensity are likely during the next day or two," the NHC warned.

Maria is moving roughly along the same path as Irma, which left at least 37 people dead and caused billions of dollars' worth of damage.

Meanwhile, another hurricane, Jose, is also active in the Atlantic, with maximum sustained winds of 90 miles per hour (145 km per hour).

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