On Wednesday, Rafael made landfall in western Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane, knocking out the nation’s beleaguered electrical grid once again. In October, the unexpected Hurricane Oscar slammed the eastern side of the country, killing eight people and damaging 20,000 homes.

Tropical Storm Rafael is expected to become a major hurricane before it makes landfall in western Cuba, the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday morning.

Rafael is expected to continue to intensify into major hurricane strength on Wednesday after becoming a hurricane the prior night. It began as a Category 1 before strengthening into a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday morning.

Tropical Storm Rafael became a Category 3 major hurricane Wednesday afternoon as it nears the coast of western Cuba, the National Hurricane Center said.

Tropical Storm Rafael strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Tuesday as it swirled past the Cayman Islands and chugged toward western Cuba, where it's forecast to hit as a Category 2 hurricane. It was another stroke of bad news for Cuba,

(Reuters) -Hurricane Rafael is passing through the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean and is forecast to rapidly intensify before making landfall in western Cuba, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.