Florida, 2002

Extreme Cold in Florida, November 30, 2002

November 30, 2002 · NWS TBW · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Cold high pressure remained in place for a second night causing freezing temperatures across inland areas of northern Florida. Some low temperatures included 28 degrees at Inverness and 26 degrees at the FAWN site northeast of Brooksville.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS TBW wrote it up.

Cold high pressure remained in place for a second night causing freezing temperatures across inland areas of northern Florida. Some low temperatures included 28 degrees at Inverness and 26 degrees at the FAWN site northeast of Brooksville.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Tampa Bay, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 29, 9:19 PM EST, 4 hours 41 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 29, 9:19 PM EST, 4 hours 41 minutes before
WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN
919 PM EST FRI NOV 29 2002

IDEAL RADIATIONAL COOLING COURTESY OF SFC HIGH PRESSURE OFF THE FL
WEST COAST WILL PROVIDE COLD AND FROSTY CONDITIONS FOR PORTIONS OF
THE FORECAST AREA OVERNIGHT...ESPECIALLY NORTHERN AND INTERIOR ZONES.
IR-SATELLITE IMAGERY DOES SHOW SOME HIGH LEVEL CIRRUS OVER THE
CENTRAL GULF MOVING EAST IN FAST W-NWLY UPPER FLOW...BUT BULK OF
THESE CLOUDS SHOULD REMAIN ON THE THIN SIDE...SO FREEZING TEMPS ARE
STILL A GOOD BET ACROSS THE FREEZE WARNING AREAS...WITH LOWER TO MID
40S CENTRAL AND SOUTH. ZONES LOOK GOOD SO NO UPDATES PLANNED. LIGHT
WIND AND SLIGHT SEAS OVER THE COASTAL WATERS WILL CONTINUE THE REST
OF THE NIGHT...WITH NO CHANGES EXPECTED IN THE 1030 PM UPDATE.

.TBW...FREEZE WARNING TONIGHT INTERIOR LEVY...CITRUS...HERNANDO
       PASCO...AND ALL OF SUMTER COUNTIES.

JCM
Hazardous weather outlook, Nov 29, 5:48 AM EST, 20 hours 12 minutes before
FLZ039-042-043-048>052-055>057-060>062-065-291500-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
548 AM EST FRI NOV 29 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST
FLORIDA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY:

A FREEZE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR LEVY COUNTY TIL SHORTLY AFTER
SUNRISE THIS MORNING.

FROST AND OR BELOW FREEZING ARE POSSIBLE IN COLD POCKETS ACROSS
INLAND CENTRAL FLORIDA TONIGHT.

RESIDENTS SHOULD COVER OR MOVE INDOORS ANY COLD SENSITIVE PLANTS
LATER TODAY. ALSO...BRING PETS INDOORS THIS EVENING.

.SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY:

COLD WEATHER IS AGAIN EXPECTED ON MONDAY MORNING...OTHERWISE

HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED.

FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT
HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TBW

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Levy

When
November 30, 2:00 AM EST to 6:00 AM EST
Where
Levy forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Citrus

When
November 30, 2:00 AM EST to 6:00 AM EST
Where
Citrus forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Sumter

When
November 30, 2:00 AM EST to 6:00 AM EST
Where
Sumter forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
28.705, -82.081 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hernando

When
November 30, 2:00 AM EST to 6:00 AM EST
Where
Hernando forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Florida in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, November 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5322573, 5322574, 5322575, 5322576.