Category 2 Hurricane Rafael: Thursday, Nov 7 status report from the NHC

South Carolina Bot

November 6, 2024 at 1:18 p.m.·3 min read

This graphic created by the National Weather Service/NCEP Weather Prediction Center (WPC) shows the projected path. NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER

Article first published: Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, 4 a.m. ET

Article last updated: Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024, 1 a.m. ET

As per the National Hurricane Center's 1 am Thursday update, there were a lot of changes today. First, Rafael changed initially into a Category 2 hurricane, a Category 3 hurricane and a hurricane but it ended up as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 105 mph. Category 2 Hurricane Rafael is 115 miles west-northwest of Havana Cuba and 155 miles west-southwest of Key West Florida, with maximum sustained wind of 105 mph. It’s moving at 13 mph to the northwest.

"... Rafael is expected to continue to move away from western Cuba over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico this morning." meteorologists observed. "Rafael is then forecast to move over the southern Gulf of Mexico for the next few days." They also said "Some weakening is possible today, with little change in strength expected on Friday."

There were many developments today. First, Rafael started out as a Category 2 hurricane, a Category 3 hurricane and a hurricane but ended up as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 105 mph.

SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:

A Hurricane Warning is in effect for:

- Cuban provinces of Pinar del Rio, Artemisa, La Habana, and Mayabeque

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for:

- Lower and Middle Florida Keys from Key West to west of the Channel 5 Bridge

- Dry Tortugas

A Hurricane Warning means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area.

A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area.

HAZARDS AFFECTING LAND:

WIND: Hurricane conditions are expected to continue in portions of western Cuba for the next few hours. Tropical storm conditions are expected in parts of the Lower and Middle Florida Keys and the Dry Tortugas through this morning.

RAINFALL: Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches are expected today, leading to storm total accumulations of 12 inches across portions of western Cuba. This may lead to areas of flash flooding and mudslides, especially along the higher terrain.

Rainfall totals of 1 to 3 inches are expected for the Lower and Middle Florida Keys.

For a complete depiction of forecast rainfall associated with Hurricane Rafael, please see the National Weather Service Storm Total Rainfall Graphic, available at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at3.shtml? Rainqpf

STORM SURGE: Storm surge flooding along the coast of Cuba should subside overnight.

The combination of a storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The water could reach the following heights above ground somewhere in the indicated areas if the peak surge occurs at the time of high tide...

Dry Tortugas...1-3 ft Lower Florida Keys...1-2 ft

TORNADOES: A couple of brief tornadoes remain possible overnight, mainly over parts of the Lower Florida Keys.

SURF: Swells generated by Rafael are expected to affect much of the northwestern Caribbean during the next day or so and will also spread across most of the Gulf of Mexico from east to west late this week into the weekend. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

Source: National Hurricane Center

This article was generated by the South Carolina Bot, artificial intelligence software that analyzes information from the National Hurricane Center and applies it to templates created by journalists in the newsroom. We are experimenting with this and other new ways of providing more useful content to our readers and subscribers. You can report errors or bugs to mcclatchybot@mcclatchy.com.

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