Hurricane Rafael slammed into Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday afternoon before losing some strength as it passed over the island and entered the Gulf of Mexico.
The storm is moving away from western Cuba as a Category 2 hurricane, and conditions on the island are expected to improve overnight, with winds, rain, and storm surge diminishing.
The hurricane, which caused the island’s power grid to crash, is the fifth major hurricane of the year in the Atlantic and the strongest this late in the year since 2020.
The storm’s winds strengthened from 60 mph to 115 mph from Tuesday afternoon to Wednesday afternoon, an increase well over the 35 mph needed for rapid intensification. As Rafael moved over Cuba, it weakened slightly to a Category 2 hurricane, with 105 mph maximum sustained winds.
Rapid intensification is happening more frequently as the atmosphere and oceans warm due to fossil fuel pollution; Rafael is the ninth storm to rapidly intensify in the Atlantic basin this year.
(CNN)
