Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledges "immediate humanitarian aid" to Cuba as State Department responds to effects of Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean.

Rescue operations and urgent evacuations continued in Cuba on Friday, as people remained trapped by severe flooding left by the torrential rains from Hurricane Melissa on rural areas and towns across the affected provinces on the eastern end of the island.

Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic storms on record, has carved a devastating path through the Caribbean this week.

Category 5 Hurricane Melissa has made landfall already in Jamaica and Cuba, as one of the strongest hurricanes to ever make landfall.