While it is not expected to directly impact the U.S., Hurricane Rafael is causing life-threatening rip current conditions across parts of Florida, Alabama, and Texas on Friday and into the weekend.

Rafael was moving west across the Gulf of Mexico Friday morning as the first major hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico in November for almost 40 years, bringing the threat of life-threatening conditions to the southern United States coastline.

Powerful Hurricane Rafael has strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico after slamming into Cuba as a major hurricane on Wednesday and continues to crawl westward slowly.