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.
"We have activated the National Defense Council to provide the maximum attention to the passage of Hurricane Rafael," Diaz-Canel said in a post on X.
"Measures have been taken in each place to protect our people and material resources. As we have always done since the Revolution, we will overcome this situation."
In Havana, state television showed workers clearing drains, collecting garbage and cutting back trees to prepare for Rafael.
The US State Department urged citizens to reconsider travel to Cuba in light of the weather conditions.
Hurricane Oscar lashed Cuba last month as it was in the throes of a four-day nationwide blackout caused by the failure of the island's biggest power plant and a shortage of fuel.
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