TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A winter weather system headed toward North Florida prompted the governor to issue a state of emergency for the region on Monday.
Total snow and sleet accumulations of up to 2 inches and ice accumulations around one-tenth of an inch are possible as Arctic air brings wintry weather across the Deep South.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for most of north Florida from Tuesday morning through midday Wednesday.
"Locally higher amounts upwards of three to four inches possible for locations that experience periods of heavy snowfall rates," Gov. Ron DeSantis said in the emergency order. "Ice accumulation from freezing rain is the most impactful winter hazard, and significant impacts to roadways, bridges, trees, and powerlines are possible."
READ THE FULL EXECUTIVE ORDER BELOW:
In addition to the wintry precipitation, the powerful cold front will bring dangerously cold wind chills and prolonged freezing and sub-freezing temperatures for North and North-Central Florida for the next several days.
"The threat posed by this winter weather system requires that timely precautions are taken to protect the communities, critical infrastructure, and general welfare of Florida," DeSantis said in the executive order.
Frigid temperatures engulfed the South on Monday ahead of a winter storm that's expected to spread heavy snow and disruptive ice around a region from Texas to north Florida that rarely sees such weather, sending residents rushing to insulate pipes, check heating systems and stock up on emergency supplies.
Good afternoon y'all. Here's the 5pm Update on the upcoming winter storm. Changes: Snowfall amounts have increased and the entire forecast area now under a winter storm warning. Precipitation now forecast to arrive a few hours earlier than previously forecast. #FLwx #ALwx #GAwx pic.twitter.com/TuFoN1oI0Y
— NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) January 20, 2025
In Texas, both Houston airports announced flight operations would be suspended starting Tuesday in expectation of hazardous conditions from an unusual blast of severe winter weather taking aim at a huge swath of the South including much of the northern Gulf Coast.
Elsewhere, the East Coast contended with a thick blanket of snow while people from the Northern Plains to the tip of Maine shivered in bitterly cold temperatures from an Arctic air mass that sent temperatures plunging well below normal Monday with dangerously cold wind chills.
Around 40 million people, primarily across the southern U.S., were under some type of weather hazard, including more than 21 million under a winter storm warning, said Marc Chenard, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland. He added about 170 million people from the Rockies to points eastward were under either an extreme warning or a cold weather advisory.
