Hurricane Rafael has crossed over western Cuba and entered the Gulf of Mexico, but is tracking westward across the Gulf into areas that are less favorable for supporting the storm. Rafael is not expected to affect us in the Southeast other than its push of moisture into the region associated with this week’s heavy rainfall. It is likely to dissipate as it moves west and then south in the western Gulf in a few days. There was some hope earlier that the remains of Rafael might move northeast over Alabama and Georgia, providing some drought relief, but this does not look likely now. Also note that there is another area of disturbed weather just NE of Puerto Rico that has a 20% chance of development as it moves westward, but it is just something to watch at this point.
