Rafael no longer a tropical storm, map clear of potential areas to watch
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Rafael has now weakened to a post-tropical cyclone.
The agency will no longer issue updates on what’s left of the system, which is calling a “post-tropical remnant low.”
Rafael briefly became a major hurricane on Wednesday afternoon before making landfall in Cuba. It emerged from the north side of the island nation as a Category 2. It has since weakened to a tropical storm.
As of Sunday afternoon, the center of Hurricane Rafael was near latitude 26.1 North, longitude 91.3 West, about 345 miles north-northeast of Progreso, Mexico.
The remnant low is expected to meander over the central Gulf of Mexico through Sunday night, then turn toward the south and south-southwest on Monday and Tuesday.
Maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 35 mph with higher gusts and is expected to dissipate by Tuesday night.
The National Hurricane Center also removed a low-pressure trough it had monitored for days near the central Bahamas from its map, indicating it had no chance of developing over the next week.
Forecasters said the system was encountering environmental conditions Sunday that would prevent it from doing so.
The remaining names on the list for the 2024 Atlantic storm season are Sara, Tony, Valerie and William.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs through Nov. 30.
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