Tropical storm warning discontinued for Florida Keys as Rafael moves into Gulf of Mexico
MIAMI - A tropical storm warning for the lower and middle Florida Keys and a hurricane warning for Cuba have been canceled as Hurricane Rafael moves away from western Cuba in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.
Hurricane Rafael intensified into a Category 3 storm before making landfall in Cuba on Wednesday afternoon. Rafael made landfall in the Cuban province of Artemisa just east of Playa Majana with maximum sustained winds near 115 mph as it moved northwest at 13 mph.
In the 4 a.m. Thursday advisory from the National Hurricane Center, Rafael had sustained winds of 105 as it moved to the northwest at 12 mph.
On the forecast track, Rafael is expected to continue to move away from western Cuba over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.
The storm is expected to turn toward the west and slow down on Thursday. Some weakening is possible during the next couple of days.
An additional 2 to 4 inches of rain are expected Thursday over western Cuba, bringing the total to about 12 inches of rain. This may lead to flash flooding and mudslides in some areas, especially along the higher terrain.