Dozens of cold records broken as snow flies and crops freeze in Florida

TC Palm, February 2, 2026

A winter onslaught set upon Florida this past weekend with an historic whimsy and devastating brutality that dusted the frozen night with snow flurries as far south as Fort Myers, and sent a crop-killing freeze to farmers, who despaired as heaps of damaging ice grew like tumors on their plants.

At least 30 overnight low temperature records were shattered early Sunday, Feb. 1 from the marshy fringes of Apalachicola, which dipped to 20 degrees, to the touristy beaches of Miami, which hit 35 degrees — 27 degrees below normal.

Multiple gauges statewide measured record lows of 23 degrees, including Jacksonville, Sanford, Leesburg and Daytona Beach. Gainesville broke a record at 20 degrees. Winter Haven measured 23 degrees, also a record breaker. And West Palm Beach dropped to 30 degrees, which is the coldest temperature as measured at Palm Beach International Airport since Dec. 25, 1989, according to the National Weather Service.

...[Cont'd] Steve Davis, chief science officer of The Everglades Foundation, said snook are particularly vulnerable to cold weather, as well as cocoplum and native red mangroves, which will lose their leaves when temperatures drop.

After the 2010 cold outbreak, which included 12 days of low temperatures in the 30s and 40s south of Lake Okeechobee, the state was forced to ban snook fishing along the Gulf Coast for several years to let the population rebound.

Davis said he doesn’t think the cold temperatures will be enough to completely rid the Everglades and urban areas of cold adverse invasive species.

“It is worth noting this is a significant cold event for South Florida,” Davis said. “It will effect the ecology of the system, we just don’t know the full extent of it at this time.”