Hurricane tracker: Rafael weakens to tropical storm [Video]

Mexico City –

Rafael weakened Saturday to a tropical storm and was expected to dissolve over the Gulf of Mexico in the coming days after barreling across Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane.

Rafael was located 290 miles (470 km) north-northwest of Progreso, Mexico on Saturday. It had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 6 mph (9 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

It was forecast to continue moving south toward southern Mexico in the coming days as it weakens. Forecasters warned that swells from the storm were likely to cause “life-threatening surf and rip current conditions” in that region.

The hurricane tore through Jamaica and the Cayman Islands earlier in the week, knocking out power and fueling mudslides. On Wednesday evening, it barreled into Cuba, causing yet another headache for the island. 

Rafael’s fierce winds knocked out Cuba’s electric grid, forced the evacuation of …