Rafael, a Category 3 hurricane just yesterday, has weakened rapidly to a tropical storm and had 65 mph winds on Saturday morning.

The National Hurricane Center thinks the storm could drift southward over the Gulf of Mexico through the middle of next week. It could also continue to weaken and become a non-tropical system during that time.

Aside from a continued risk of rip currents, Alabama faces no direct threat from Rafael.

As of the last advisory, at 3 a.m. CST Saturday, Tropical Storm Rafael was located about 405 miles east of the mouth of the Rio Grande River and was moving to the west-northwest at 6 mph.

Rafael had 65 mph winds. The hurricane center said steady weakening is expected over the next few days.

Rafael is forecast to stay on a west-northwest track today, then it could turn more to the south early next week.

The hurricane center’s long-range track forecast shows the storm continuing to head southward toward Mexico next week while becoming a non-tropical system.

Although Rafael will stay well away from the U.S. Gulf Coast, the storm could continue to cause a high risk of rip currents and rough seas across the area, the hurricane center said.

The National Weather Service in Mobile is continuing to forecast a high risk of deadly rip currents along the Alabama and northwest Florida beaches through Monday night:

A surge of tropical moisture steered by the storm but not directly related to it could also cause heavy rain across parts of southeastern Texas and central Louisiana this weekend, which forecasters said could cause “potentially significant” flash flooding.

The rest of the tropical Atlantic was quiet on Saturday. The hurricane center was tracking one tropical wave near the Bahamas and Cuba, but it had only a 10 percent chance of becoming a tropical depression in the next week.

The Atlantic hurricane season will end on Nov. 30.