An active 2024 Atlantic Hurricane season continues as Rafael strengthens into a category 1 storm. It's expected to batter Cayman Islands and Cuba before swinging into the Gulf of Mexico.

Another tropical storm is likely to develop in the Caribbean late next week. This storm will be called “Rafael”. Here’s what the Hurricane Center says: “Southwestern Caribbean Sea:Disorganized showers and thunderstorms over the southwestern Caribbean Sea are associated with a broad area of low pressure.

As of 7 a.m. Thursday, the disturbance had a 50% chance of forming into a tropical depression or storm within the next week.

Hurricane Rafael. AccuWeather currently suggests that Rafael is most likely to make landfall along the central Louisiana coast. However, the National Hurricane Center

The hurricane is in rarified air for storms in November, but will be in much different shape as it approaches the US.

Rafael intensified into a Category 1 hurricane Tuesday evening in the Caribbean near the Cayman Islands as it headed for the Gulf of Mexico, forecasters said.

Rafael strengthened into a low-end hurricane Tuesday night as it approached the Cayman Islands in the central Caribbean Sea, the National Hurricane Center said. The rare November hurricane was expected to continue churning northwest toward western Cuba and enter the Gulf of Mexico this week,

The NHC's 10 a.m. forecast track included a significant shift to the south, with Rafael taking a sharp turn toward the Texas coast Thursday after entering the Gulf of Mexico.