Snow in Florida?! Panhandle wakes up to rare, wintry mix on Tuesday thanks to strong cold front
Orlando Weather Forecast: Jan. 16, 2024
Expect temperatures to plunge in the overnight hours. We are declaring Wednesday a FOX 35 Weather Impact Day because freezing temperatures will be scattered across our northern counties with windchill or "feels-like" temperatures in the low-30s around Orlando. Highs across the region will break into the low-50s to the north with upper-50s across southern counties.
JAY, Fla. - Parts of North Florida woke up to an unusual sight on Tuesday morning – snow!
On Tuesday, a rare, wintry mix fell to the ground in far-west areas of the Florida Panhandle. Areas along and west of Pensacola saw freezing drizzle when they woke up, and there were even some reports of sleet.
ORLANDO WEATHER: Cold front could bring strong storms with heavy rain, damaging wind gusts to Central Florida
That's all thanks to a strong cold front with a rush of cold air that came in with just enough moisture left in the air to bring the wintry weather down to the surface.
On Tuesday morning, lows in Pensacola fell just below freezing.
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Miranda Simpson-Wes Kell, a resident of Jay, shared a video with FOX 35 from outside her home at around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, that shows snow flurries falling to the ground in her driveway. Jay is located a few miles south of the Florida-Alabama border and about an hour north of Pensacola.
It's not totally out of the ordinary for this to happen in Florida, but it's rare. Winter events can happen in the Sunshine State when cold air undercuts the moisture, but usually, the cold air arrives too late for it to happen here.
While temperatures are still too warm aloft for snow, freezing rain can be impactful, causing dangerous driving conditions.
Regarding the weather forecast, freeze warnings are in effect for the northern Florida counties late Tuesday through Wednesday morning. Lows in Central Florida will fall to 32 degrees or colder for at least a couple of hours. Temperatures will gradually warm through the remainder of the week, ahead of another strong cold front expected to move into the area late Friday.