Rafael lashed the Cayman Islands in the western Caribbean with strong winds and heavy rain Tuesday night, and the Category 1 hurricane is expected to keep strengthening before it makes landfall in Cuba on Wednesday.

Tropical Storm Rafael gained steam late on Monday as it churned northward toward Cuba, which is still struggling to recover from a nationwide blackout and hurricane two weeks ago. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Rafael would see "steady or rapid intensification" before plowing across western Cuba with maximum predicted winds of up to 100 mph (160 kph) by Wednesday.