Tropical Storm Rafael strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Tuesday as it swirled past Jamaica and chugged toward western Cuba, becoming the season’s 11th hurricane with winds and a storm surge expected to affect the Florida Keys this week.
The port of Freeport in South Texas closed to inbound vessel traffic ahead of Tropical Storm Rafael, according to a notice from a shipping agency.
It was another stroke of bad news for Cuba, which has been struggling with blackouts while recovering from another hurricane two weeks ago that killed at least six people in the eastern part of the island.
The storm was located 20 miles southeast of Little Cayman in the Cayman Islands on Tuesday morning. It had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph and was moving northwest at 15 mph (24 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Forecasters warned that Rafael was expected to slam into the island on Wednesday after dumping rain on Jamaica and the Cayman Islands on Tuesday. The center warned of floods and mudslides.
Immediate concerns for the Caribbean include rainfall totals could reach more than 10 inches over Jamaica and Cuba through mid-week with the threat of flash flooding and mudslides.
“Steady to rapid intensification is expected during the next 24 to 36 hours, and Rafael is expected to become a hurricane as it passes near the Cayman Islands with further strengthening before it makes landfall in Cuba,” forecasters said.
The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday declared condition ‘whiskey’ at some ports in Florida including Tampa and St. Petersburg, which means vessels must indicate location ahead of the storm and make preparations to dock or leave in the coming day, as gale force winds were expected within 72 hours.
Major energy companies said on Tuesday they are evacuating some oil production workers and securing offshore platforms as they prepare for the approach of Rafael toward the Gulf of Mexico.
Once it makes it into the Gulf of Mexico, Rafael’s final destination along the Gulf Coast remains uncertain, with the five-day forecast track still with a wide range of potential from Texas to the fart western Florida panhandle.
“It is too soon to determine what, if any, impacts Rafael could bring to portions of the northern Gulf Coast. Residents in this area should regularly monitor updates to the forecast,” forecasters said.
Its intensity, though, should drop from hurricane strength before landfall with drier air and stronger vertical wind shear present in the central Gulf of Mexico.
The NHC also continued to track a potential system that could form north of the Caribbean’s Leeward Islands in a couple days.
Orlando Sentinel and Reuters contributed to this report.
