Powerful Hurricane Rafael has strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico after making landfall in Cuba as a major hurricane on Wednesday and continues to slowly creep west.

HURRICANE RAFAEL UPDATE: LOCATION it THE DESIGNED PATH it IMPACT USA

Rafael is currently a Category 3 hurricane, with some fluctuations in intensity possible Friday, the National Hurricane Center said. By evening, a steady weakening trend is forecast and should continue into the weekend.

Intensity forecast for Hurricane Rafael. (FOX Weather)

However, Cuba and parts of the western Caribbean were hardest hit by the storm, which brought damaging hurricane-force winds, flooding rains and a life-threatening storm surge.

All tropical warnings have been lifted and conditions are expected to gradually improve in the region, but millions of people along the US Gulf Coast will be closely monitoring the hurricane’s progress as it slowly twists across the Gulf of Mexico.

As of the latest advisory from the NHC, Rafael is about 245 miles north-northeast of Progreso, a port city on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula.

This chart shows the status of Hurricane Rafael. (FOX Weather)

It is moving west at 9 mph. Rafael has maximum sustained winds of 120 mph.

Forecast models favor a weakening pattern over the next few days as Rafael moves into a drier environment and encounters stronger wind shear over the weekend.

Forecast cone for Hurricane Rafael. (FOX Weather)

If Rafael survives next week, the FOX Forecast Center said it could be because it moved far enough south in the western Gulf of Mexico to avoid those hostile conditions. In this case, the Mexican coast could be threatened.

Rafael is unlikely to cause any significant problems for the US Gulf Coast FOX Forecast Center said.

Spaghetti plots for Hurricane Rafael. (FOX Weather)

At best, it will stay in the Gulf and have no impact on the US. At worst, a rapidly weakening system will bring a period of heavy rain either this weekend or next week.