The potential storm follows swiftly on from Hurricane Rafael, which hit Cuba last week. Making landfall as a Category 2 hurricane with prior wind speeds peaking at 115 miles per hour, it knocked out the country's entire power grid. It was the strongest November tropical cyclone in the Gulf of Mexico on record, matched only by 1985's Hurricane Kate.

The next tropical storm in the Atlantic basin could form later this week as thunderstorms brew in the Caribbean.