Tom McLaughlinPensacola News Journal
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Santa Rosa County's emergency personnel knew well ahead of time the threat of severe winter weather they were facing Tuesday, up to and including snow and freezing rain.
No one, though, could have imagined the extent of the mischief Mother Nature had up her sleeve. Winter Storm Enzo, as it is being called, dropped an unbelievable 10 inches of snow on the city of Milton, more than doubling the 1954 Florida record of four inches, also set in Milton.
"That was unprecedented snowfall in Santa Rosa County," said County Emergency Management Director Tom Lloyd. "We had our emergency management personnel qued up and ready to go, and we did our best to predict what the forecast called for, but we were surprised that we got as much as we did."
Milton wasn't the only Santa Rosa County community pelted with powder as four inches of snow also fell along the coast in Navarre, according to the National Weather Service in Mobile.
While not exactly a smattering, the south of the county ended the evening Tuesday in better shape than the middle and northern portions of the county, Lloyd said.
Try as they might, Lloyd said, emergency units could not respond in the midst of the chaos to the 699 911 calls and 554 administrative calls Santa Rosa County dispatchers fielded between 9 a.m. Tuesday and 9 a.m. Wednesday.
"We tried to get out when we could, but there was a short period when we had to pause our responses to certain calls due to the weather conditions because we couldn't get out there," he said Wednesday afternoon. "We did follow up with everyone this morning."
Pensacola snow storm provides fun opportunity for residents
Here are some of our best photos from Tuesday's snowfall, taken by staff photographers and submitted by Pensacola News Journal readers.
Though Lloyd couldn't provide an exact number, a scan of sources such as the Florida Highway Patrol traffic accident tracker and the FL511 website provided ample evidence that despite stern warnings against doing so, drivers were venturing out into the snow Tuesday night and Wednesday morning and either getting stuck in the snow or having accidents, which occurred with consistent frequency all over Northwest Florida.
"We had several accidents," Lloyd said. "Fortunately none of them turned out to be major, and most were minor."
Firefighters were also called upon to battle a residential fire on Hickory Hammock Road in East Milton Tuesday night and a structure fire on Oak Tree Lane, also in the Milton area, Wednesday morning. Lloyd was unable to provide the extent of the damage caused by either blaze.
Lloyd also reported that Ferris Baptist Church, which has offered shelter to the homeless and heatless throughout the weather crisis, was at full capacity Wednesday night.
While a lot of snow was melting off of roadways under the midday sun Thursday, weather experts were expecting intense cold to take hold of the region as evening temperatures fell.
Agencies monitoring the ongoing winter weather impacting the area announced another Extreme Cold Warning has been issued to run between 9 p.m. this evening and 9 a.m. Thursday morning, with lows possibly dropping to 10 degrees.
The announcement said that the expected melt off of the heavy amount of snow and ice still on area roadways are expected to freeze up and result in sheets of ice forming overnight.
"Don’t be lulled into a sense of security in seeing the sun doing its job and thinking the roads will be clear when the snow melts," an email from the Okaloosa County Emergency Management Division said. "It will re-freeze tonight. Be careful. If you don’t have to be on the road, don’t."
Lloyd said Santa Rosa County first responders will be ready again to meet the challenges presented.
"The team expects that any moisture that has melted off of the existing snow banks will freeze again and become ice, which could make operating a vehicle very treacherous," Lloyd said. "We will continue to evaluate everything very closely and work hand and hand with our partners."
More: Pensacola snow storm keeps residents off the streets and heading for the hills - to sled
And while no more snow is projected to fall, Northwest Florida can lay claim to some interesting distinctions.
Accuweather reports that for January snowfall so far, Lafayette, Pensacola (8.9 inches), New Orleans and Mobile are beating Salt Lake City, New York City, Sioux Falls, Des Moines, Boise, Flagstaff, Albuquerque, and Reno, as well as Anchorage and Fairbanks Alaska, Colorado Springs, Chicago, and Fargo in North Dakota.
Even for seasonal snowfall so far, Accuweather said, Lafayette, Pensacola, New Orleans & Mobile are beating Salt Lake City, New York City, Sioux Falls, Des Moines, Boise, Flagstaff, Albuquerque and Reno.
