Hurricane Rafael barreled toward Cuba on Wednesday, forecast to make landfall in western Cuba as a major Category 3 hurricane that forecasters warn could bring “life-threatening” storm surges,

Hurricane Rafael, a powerful category 2 storm verging on category 3, was bearing down on western Cuba Wednesday morning. As of the 10 a.m. update, the National Hurricane Center noted it was “very likely” that Rafael could be a major hurricane by the time it strikes the island nation, which has recently been struggling with prolonged power outages.