H​urricane Rafael will enter the Gulf of Mexico and while that sounds unnerving we don't forecast it to have anywhere near the magnitude of impacts of either Helene or Milton. T​he current forecast: The latest projected path of this system from the National Hurricane Center is shown in the forecast graphic below.

Soon-to-be Rafael will eventually track into the Gulf later this week. The low-pressure area is moving north from the southern Caribbean. A tropical storm warning has been issued for Jamaica. The storm is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane over the next several days.

All attention is on the tropics as we enter the first week of November with future Rafael expected to develop and become a hurricane in the Gulf.

Rafael lashed the Cayman Islands in the western Caribbean with strong winds and heavy rain Tuesday night, and the Category 1 hurricane is expected to keep strengthening before it makes landfall in Cuba on Wednesday.