Hurricane Melissa: Aerial view of 'ground zero' destruction

BBC correspondent Will Grant witnessed the sheer magnitude of Hurricane Melissa's path on board one of the first aid helicopters to the stricken town of Black River, Jamaica.

The aid charity Samaritan's Purse is one of many organisations working to get much needed supplies to the community - as well as set up a field hospital.

Melissa hit Jamaica as a category five storm on Tuesday, one of the strongest ever recorded in the Caribbean, killing at least 28 people on the island and flattening some coastal communities.

In western Jamaica, many of the roads are blocked by debris and people are isolated with little food and no power or running water.

The hurricane also killed at least 31 people in Haiti and at least two people in the Dominican Republic.