Reuters' latest storm report said Hurricane Rafael made landfall on the southwestern coast of Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 km/h and devastating the island nation.
The storm was moving about 75 km southwest of Cuba's capital Havana late on the afternoon of November 6, causing heavy rain and strong winds in Cuba's capital of nearly 2 million people.
Cuba's state grid operator UNE said high winds had knocked out the country's power system, leaving the entire population of 10 million without power.
This is Cuba's second blackout in less than a month. Hurricane Oscar hit the far east of Cuba at the same time as last month's blackout, dealing a double blow to the island.
Hurricane Rafael had passed through the Cayman Islands as a Category 1 hurricane overnight before intensifying into a powerful Category 3 hurricane less than 24 hours earlier off the southwest coast of Cuba. Forecasters had previously predicted that Rafael would peak as a Category 2 hurricane.
Hurricane forecasters expect Rafael to leave Cuba on November 7 to begin its westward journey through the Gulf of Mexico as a Category 3 hurricane, but the path of the newest storm of the Atlantic hurricane season remains uncertain.
According to AccuWeather, forecasts show Hurricane Rafael could make landfall anywhere from the Texas coast to the Florida Panhandle sometime this weekend, with the most likely landfall along the central Louisiana coast as a tropical storm.
Other possible scenarios for Hurricane Rafael's path include the storm turning west and moving across the west coast of Mexico.
Hurricane forecasters point out that drier air and stronger vertical wind shear in the Gulf of Mexico are expected to weaken Hurricane Rafael as it approaches the U.S. mainland.
"This will not be a situation where a major hurricane strengthens to make landfall in the US, but rather a less intense storm in terms of wind intensity," AccuWeather forecasts.
Hurricane Rafael's compact size, combined with extremely warm ocean waters and humid atmospheric conditions, are contributing to the storm's ferocity, the Washington Post's hurricane report said.
Hurricane Rafael is expected to become the fifth major hurricane of the Atlantic hurricane season, two more than the long-term average and the most active year since 2020.
According to hurricane forecaster Philip Klotzbach at Colorado State University, Rafael is the first major hurricane to make landfall in Cuba in November since Hurricane Michelle in 2001.
