Hurricane Rafael headed into the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday after striking Cuba as a Category 3 major hurricane one day earlier. As of 4 p.m., Rafael was still a Category 2 hurricane with 105 mph sustained winds located about 260 miles west-northwest of ...

Rafael is forecasted to become a major hurricane before making landfall in Cuba later today. At 10 am, the center of Hurricane Rafael was located near latitude 21.4 North, longitude 81.9 West. Rafael is moving toward the northwest near 14 mph.

As the center of Rafael moved on to the Gulf, parts of western Cuba were experiencing "life-threatening storm surge" and flash flooding, the hurricane center said Wednesday evening. All the while, the island's entire population of 10 million was once again left in the dark,