Cuba on alert as Hurricane Rafael approaches

Cuba is bracing for Hurricane Rafael, which is expected to make landfall Wednesday and compound the misery wrought by a recent power blackout and Hurricane Oscar.

Rafael was strengthening en route to the Cayman Islands on Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center in the United States.

The agency declared Rafael became a Category 1 hurricane as it passed near the Cayman Islands. Category 5 is the strongest.

The storm was expected to gain further power before making landfall in western Cuba.

Nine provinces in west and central Cuba, including the capital Havana, have been placed on cyclone alert.

According to Cuban media, over 70,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, mostly in Guantanamo, in the east, where eight people were killed by Hurricane Oscar last month.

While Guantanamo is not expected to experience hurricane conditions, persistent rain this week has left the ground saturated.

The office of Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel reported Tuesday that it was mobilizing the National Defense Council, consisting of military personnel, due to the storm.