MIAMI (AP) — Rafael has weakened to a low-pressure system in the Gulf of Mexico after barreling into Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane last week.
According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Rafael weakened into a tropical storm on Saturday and dissipated into a remnant layer on Sunday.
The center said Sunday that the post-tropical cyclone was located about 350 miles (560 kilometers) northwest of Progreso, Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 35 miles (55 km) per hour. It was moving east at 6 km per hour and was expected to swing south towards southern Mexico as it continues to weaken on Monday.
Forecasters warned that the storm’s swell was likely to create dangerous surf and current conditions in parts of the northern and western Gulf coasts.
Rafael hit West Cuba on Wednesday. The heavy winds paralyzed Cuba’s power grid, forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate and collapsed hundreds of homes. The hurricane hit Jamaica and the Cayman Islands earlier this week, knocking out power and causing mudslides.
