A continued lack of rainfall allowed pre-existing drought conditions to worsen in the month of January with much of South Florida entering a severe drought.
Every event with a place to put it; 7 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MFL wrote it up.
A continued lack of rainfall allowed pre-existing drought conditions to worsen in the month of January with much of South Florida entering a severe drought.
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 Miami, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 13, 6:13 AM EST, 3 hours 47 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Miami FL
613 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
...New AVIATION...
.KEY MESSAGES...
Updated at 611 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
- Occasional showers continue today favoring east coast metro
areas.
- Hazardous winds and seas in the Atlantic will improve today.
- Another strong cold front could drop across the peninsula on
Thursday, bringing reinforcing cold air and more increased
rain chances.
&&
.SHORT TERM...
(Today through Wednesday)
Issued at 300 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
Latest ensembles and global model solutions show a decaying sfc
boundary lingering over SoFlo today, and maybe lifting a little
northward. This will require keeping some POPs through early this
evening, 20-30 percent, favoring the eastern side of SoFlo. 00Z MFL
sounding and model data keep PWATs in the 1.3-1.5" range, for which
potential for isolated rainfall amounts of 1" still remains in the
forecast.
By Wednesday, models show a mid lvl shortwave feature moving around
the base of a deepening trough over the SE CONUS. Both systems are
shown migrating eastward, with overall synoptic flow veering more
southwestward/westward by the afternoon hours. This will further
focus highest chances of rain over the Atlantic coastline and
around the Broward/Palm Beach metro areas. Meanwhile, a more
robust sfc cold front will be pushed southward towards northern
Florida by late Wednesday.
High temperatures for the short term should remain in the upper 70s
to near 80, with overnight lows tonight mainly in the low 60s, with
some mid 60s around the east coast metro areas.
&&
.LONG TERM...
(Wednesday night through Monday)
Issued at 300 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
Model consensus depict a FROPA reaching the area on Thursday, with
rain chances increasing in the Wed night-Thu morning time frame
ahead of the front. Latest timing with this feature places the best
chances of showers during the mid/late morning hours on Thursday
with scattered to numerous showers possible. In general, dynamic
support seem to remain poor as the parent trough/low complex will
continue to pull NE into the eastern seaboard. And with prevailing
cloud cover, the daytime heating component should remain weak enough
to keep mention of thunderstorms out of the forecast attm. This,
however, will continue to be revised and updated as necessary.
50-70 POPs remain in the forecast for Thursday morning.
Winds veer northward Thursday night into Friday as broad high
pressure spreads across the SE CONUS, triggering another cold/dry
air advection event. Coldest temperatures with this robust cold air
mass are expected Friday morning before sunrise, with coastal areas
dropping into the upper 30s to mid 40s, and interior/northern areas
in the low-mid 30s. Friday afternoon will also remain fairly cool
for being SoFlo, with highs struggling to hit the mid-upper 60s.
Temperatures then gradually warm up during the weekend, but still
remaining around the low 70s in general. Then by Monday, models seem
to suggest another possible cool down with a front approaching the
area. There is still a lot of uncertainty in long range guidance, so
the forecast philosophy beyond the weekend will continue to be
updated with new guidance.
&&
.AVIATION...
(12Z TAFS)
Issued at 611 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
Borderline IFR ceilings for a couple hours across the east coast
metro and then MVFR ceilings should be prevailing after 13Z
through much of the day with some scattered showers possible. ENE
winds around 10 kts today, with a westerly Gulf breeze developing
at APF this afternoon. Winds will be light and variable late
tonight.
&&
.MARINE...
Issued at 300 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
Hazardous boating conditions will continue until later this morning,
then conditions will quickly subside and remain below highlight
criteria through the middle of the week. A frontal passage is
expected to bring another round of hazardous-level winds and seas
for the Thursday night-Friday timeframe.
&&
.BEACHES...
Issued at 300 AM EST Tue Jan 13 2026
High risk of rip currents expected to continue across the
Atlantic coastline until this evening.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Miami 78 67 79 63 / 50 20 30 10
West Kendall 79 62 80 59 / 50 20 20 20
Opa-Locka 79 66 80 62 / 50 30 30 20
Homestead 80 66 80 62 / 40 20 30 10
Fort Lauderdale 76 66 79 62 / 50 30 30 20
N Ft Lauderdale 76 66 79 62 / 50 40 30 20
Pembroke Pines 78 64 80 61 / 50 30 30 20
West Palm Beach 75 65 78 59 / 40 40 30 20
Boca Raton 76 65 80 60 / 50 40 30 20
Naples 79 64 75 63 / 20 30 20 60
&&
.MFL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FL...High Rip Current Risk through this evening for FLZ168-172-173.
AM...None.
GM...None.
&&
SHORT TERM...17
LONG TERM....17
AVIATION...CMFThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
7 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
A severe (D2) drought developed over inland Collier County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over coastal Collier County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over mainland Monroe County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over inland Miami-Dade County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over far south Miami-Dade County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over metropolitan Miami-Dade County at the beginning to middle of January.
A severe (D2) drought developed over coastal Miami-Dade County at the beginning to middle of January.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, January 2026
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: 1313630, 1313633, 1313635, 1313636, 1313637, 1313639, 1313640.