Extreme Cold in Florida, January 24 to 25, 2003

Name: Extreme Cold in Florida, January 24 to 25, 2003
Start: 2003-01-24T21:00
End: 2003-01-25T08:00
Location: Florida

January 24 to 25, 2003 · NWS TBW · 14 events in 14 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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: $8.5 million
Events: 14

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.

Arctic high pressure settled over the southeastern United States which maintained the clear and cold weather across the Florida peninsula. Overnight lows of 19 to 24 occurred from Bronson to Brooksville with temperatures in the 30s farther south. Northeast winds of 10 to 15 mph produced wind chills down to 25 degrees from Tampa to Lakeland to Fort Myers. Citrus crops faired well during the freeze but strawberrys took an estimated $4.5 million dollar loss and tropical fish an estimated $4 million dollar loss.

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 Jan 24, 6:03 PM EST, 2 hours 57 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 24, 6:03 PM EST, 2 hours 57 minutes before

WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
603 PM EST FRI JAN 24 2003

...JUST A HEADS UP WE WILL BE MAKING SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO THE FREEZE
WARNING FOR TONIGHT INCLUDING EXPANDING IT SOUTHWARD INTO INTERIOR
CHARLOTTE AND LEE AND POTENTIALLY BRINGING THE HARD FREEZE LINE
FARTHER SOUTH.  I WILL SEND DETAILS SOON...

SOBIEN

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 24, 6:05 AM EST, 14 hours 55 minutes before

FLZ039-042-043-048>052-055>057-060>062-065-241600-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
605 AM EST FRI JAN 24 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT:

...DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE MORNING COMMUTE...
...FREEZE AND HARD FREEZE WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF
INTERIOR WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA TONIGHT...

THIS MORNING:
A WIND CHILL ADVISORY CONTINUES UNTIL NOON.  NORTH WINDS OF 10 TO 20
MPH WILL PRODUCE FEELS LIKE TEMPERATURES OF 10 TO 15 DEGREES ACROSS
THE NATURE COAST...AND 15 TO 20 DEGREES ELSEWHERE...DURING THE HEART
OF THE MORNING COMMUTE BETWEEN 7 AND 9 AM.

ON THE COASTAL WATERS...WINDS WILL REMAIN GUSTY UP TO 25 KNOTS...
AND SEAS AT OR ABOVE 8 FEET JUST OFFSHORE...THROUGH MID MORNING
BEFORE CONDITIONS GRADUALLY IMPROVE TOWARDS NOON.

RESIDENTS VENTURING OUT THIS MORNING SHOULD DRESS WARMLY. SEVERAL
LAYERS OF CLOTHING WILL INSULATE YOU BETTER THAN A SINGLE COAT OR
JACKET.  MARINERS MAY WISH TO POSTPONE TRIPS UNTIL LATER TODAY OR
SATURDAY WHEN CONDITIONS IMPROVE.

TONIGHT:
TEMPERATURES WILL FALL RAPIDLY AFTER SUNSET.  READINGS WILL DROP
BELOW FREEZING BEFORE 9 PM FROM INTERIOR PASCO COUNTY THROUGH LEVY
COUNTY...AND BY MIDNIGHT OR SO ELSEWHERE.

LOW TEMPERATURES BY  DAYBREAK SATURDAY WILL BE IN THE 20S NORTH OF
TAMPA BAY...NEAR 30 OVER INTERIOR WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA FROM SARASOTA
TO HIGHLANDS COUNTIES NORTH TO HILLSBOROUGH AND POLK COUNTIES...AND
JUST ABOVE FREEZING IN URBAN AND COASTAL LOCATIONS FROM TAMPA BAY TO
FORT MYERS.

DAMAGE IS LIKELY TO COLD SENSITIVE PLANTS TONIGHT...AND SMALL PETS
LEFT OUTDOORS ARE ALSO AT RISK. CONTINUE TO COVER PLANTS...AND BRING
PETS INDOORS LATER TODAY.

RESIDENTS OVER INTERIOR PORTIONS OF THE NATURE COAST SHOULD CONTINUE
TO WRAP...OR LET DRIP...OUTDOOR WATER PIPES.  THOSE WITH ROOFTOP
SOLAR WATER HEATERS OR IN GROUND IRRIGATION SYSTEMS SHOULD KEEP THEM
DRAINED UNTIL THE WEATHER IMPROVES LATER SATURDAY.

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

...MORE FREEZES POSSIBLE NORTH OF TAMPA BAY EARLY NEXT WEEK...

ANOTHER COLD FRONT WILL REINFORCE CHILLY AIR ACROSS THE SUNCOAST
MONDAY AND TUESDAY.  NORTH OF TAMPA BAY...LOW TEMPERATURES MAY DROP
BELOW FREEZING BOTH TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY MORNING...AND COULD
APPROACH FREEZING OVER INTERIOR WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA TUESDAY
MORNING.  NO OTHER HAZARDS ARE EXPECTED.

.SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

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

BSG

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 24, 6:11 PM EST, 2 hours 49 minutes before

FLZ039-042-043-048>052-055>057-060>062-065-250115-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
611 PM EST FRI JAN 24 2003

THE FREEZE WARNING WILL BE EXTENDED SOUTHWESTWARD TO INCLUDE ALL BUT
THE IMMEDIATE COAST OF CHARLOTTE AND LEE COUNTIES.  THE HARD FREEZE
WARNING WILL BE EXTENDED SOUTHWARD TO INCLUDE INTERIOR HILLSBOROUGH
AND WESTERN POLK COUNTIES.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Levy

When: January 24, 9:00 PM EST to January 25, 8:00 AM EST
Where: Levy forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Citrus

When: January 24, 11:00 PM EST to January 25, 8:00 AM EST
Where: Citrus forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hernando

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Hernando forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Sumter

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 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, Pasco

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Pasco forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Pinellas

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Pinellas forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 27.903, -82.739 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hillsborough

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Hillsborough forecast zone
Crop damage: $7.5 million
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Polk

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Polk forecast zone
Crop damage: $1.0 million
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 27.949, -81.698 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Manatee

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Manatee forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Sarasota

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Sarasota forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hardee

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Hardee forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 27.493, -81.810 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, De Soto

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: De Soto forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 27.186, -81.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Charlotte

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Charlotte forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Lee

When: January 25, 1:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Lee 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

Every storm in Florida in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Florida, January 2003

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: 5339172, 5339173, 5339174, 5339175, 5339176, 5339560, 5339561, 5339562, 5339563, 5339564, 5339565, 5339566, 5339567, 5339568.