Tropical Storm Rafael was rapidly picking up steam on Tuesday afternoon as it chugged toward the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean, and will likely become a hurricane in the next few hours, according to the U.

Rafael was expected to continue to pass by Jamaica through Tuesday afternoon, be near or over the Cayman Islands on Tuesday night, and make landfall in Cuba on Wednesday.

We continue to track the progress of what is now Tropical Storm Rafael moving towards Jamaica and Cuba. The forecast from the national Hurricane center calls for the system to become a hurricane before reaching Cuba and the Isle of youth.