Hurricane Rafael hits Cuba hard and threatens the Gulf of Mexico

Rafael left Cuba with force. The powerful Category 3 hurricane Rafael left the island leaving it in darkness due to a widespread power outage and total destruction in some villages.

Rafael hit western Cuba two weeks after the passage of deadly storm Oscar, which struck the island's east during a four-day power outage. Rafael's strong winds and rains also affected Havana, home to two million people. Stores were closed and several gas stations had their fuel pumps removed, while the streets looked almost empty.

"The center of Rafael is moving southeast of the Gulf of Mexico," the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC), based in Miami, said in its latest report.

However,Rafael is expected to weaken after its passage through the Gulf of Mexico this weekend.

"Rafael is expected to remain a hurricane through the end of this week as it slowly moves toward the central Gulf of Mexico. Dry air, some wind shear and decreasing oceanic heat content will cause a gradual weakening during that period," highlighted weather site Weather.

Rafael, whose eye entered through Majana beach in the province of Artemisa (west), remained two and a half hours over Cuban territory before leaving it weakened as a category 2 cyclone on the Saffir Simpson scale which reaches a maximum of 5.