Hurricane Rafael rapidly intensified into a Category 3 hurricane in the Caribbean and is a few hours away from slamming into Cuba. The powerful hurricane is the fifth major hurricane of the year in the Atlantic and the strongest in the basin this late in the year since 2020.

ToplineTropical Storm Rafael is expected to strengthen on Tuesday while becoming a hurricane over the western Caribbean as the storm heads northwest toward the Gulf Coast later this week, impacting the Florida Keys and other states,

About 17% of crude oil production and 7% of natural gas output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico was shut in response to Hurricane Rafael, the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said on Wednesday.