AlQa'dah 26, 1432, Oct 24, 2011, SPA -- Rina strengthened into a hurricane Monday in the western Caribbean Sea, threatening to bring heavy rain and strong wind to Central America and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. After forming as a tropical storm overnight, Rina quickly strengthened into a hurricane and is likely to hit Belize and Mexico's popular tourist coast by the end of the week, the NHC said. "Additional strengthening is expected during the next 48 hours, and Rina is forecast to become a major (Category-3) hurricane by late Tuesday," it said. Rina currently is a Category-1 hurricane on the five-level scale, with sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (kph). The sixth hurricane and 17th names storm of the Atlantic hurricane season was about 215 kilometers east of Chetumal, Mexico, traveling northwest at about 18 kph, the NHC said. The hurricane center forecasts Rina will move directly over the popular Mexican tourist island of Cozumel and graze the beach city of Cancun on Friday. The storm was predicted to drop 10 centimeters of rain on the Grand Cayman islands, with similar amounts on the mainland. Central America is just starting to recover from recent torrential rains that triggered deadly flooding and landslides, killing more than 100 people, including 36 in Guatemala, 34 in El Salvador, and 18 in Honduras.
