H​urricane Rafael will enter the Gulf of Mexico and while that sounds unnerving we don't forecast it to have anywhere near the magnitude of impacts of either Helene or Milton. T​he current forecast: The latest projected path of this system from the National Hurricane Center is shown in the forecast graphic below.

After blasting across western Cuba as a Cat 3, Rafael emerged into the Gulf of Mexico as a rare November Cat 2.

Rafael has made landfall in the Cuban province of Artemisa just east of Playa Majana at 4:15 PM. Maximum sustained winds at landfall are estimated to be near 115 mph.

Rafael was a Category 2 hurricane on Thursday morning as it pulled away from Cuba and into the southern Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center’s latest long-range track shows Rafael taking a westward path through the Gulf that may keep the storm well away from the northern Gulf Coast.

Hurricane Rafael has made landfall along the southern Cuban coast. The storm made landfall in the Cuban province of Artemisa at 4:15 pm as a Category 3 major hurricane, with winds of 115 mph. Rafael will move across Cuba as a major hurricane and enter the Gulf of Mexico later tonight.