A snow-covered Williams Street in Fort Walton Beach on Tuesday, January 21
This time we got much more than we bargained for, or more than we expected at least.
It was more than the minor flurries that a few of us have been lucky enough to catch falling onto car windshields in more rural areas like Crestview and DeFuniak Springs.
This time we got a full-on snowstorm.
Winter Storm Enzo, that is.
Enzo’s determined nature brought with it record snowfall for the Emerald Coast on Tuesday, January 21. According to reports from Northwest Florida Daily News, coastal Panhandle communities saw anywhere from 2 to 9 inches of snow, breaking records and leaving locals in awe.
Pensacola got 8.9 inches, while Navarre experienced 4 inches. In Okaloosa County, 7.5 inches fell in Fort Walton Beach, Crestview got 9 inches, and Destin saw 2.8 inches. Walton County saw as much as 5.5 inches in Freeport, 4.8 in DeFuniak Springs, and 3.25 in Miramar Beach. Bay County communities experienced snowfall ranging from 4 to 6 inches.
Today, Thursday, January 23, I woke up to find that snow still blanketed much of my Fort Walton Beach home. My yard, roof, vehicles, and several plants—unfortunately neglected and left to freeze by yours truly—still sat weighted by remnants of the snowstorm now two days past.
By the afternoon, much of this has melted or is on its way. The still chilly but sunny day created what sounds like a sun shower from inside at my desk, as melted snow turns to water trickling from roofs and treetops.
The snow will melt, the kids will go back to school, and businesses will reopen. Winter will fade to spring, and we’ll be back on the sand and in the water in no time.
But the core memories formed this winter will stay with us—the lucky Floridians who experienced snow at the beach.
We stayed home, we drank hot chocolate, we played with our pups and our children, we made snowmen, we walked our neighborhoods with childlike wonder as the fluffiest white snow sank beneath our boots. And some of us ventured out to parks, beaches, and bayside docks for the ultimate snow experience.
No matter where we were when snowflakes hit the snow-white sands of our coastline, we were here experiencing the rarity that is snow at the beach.
Editor’s note: Feedback from locals indicates that areas of Destin and Navarre experienced more snowfall than reports show. One Navarre resident measured 7 inches at their home while locals in Destin similarly noted as much as 4 to 6 inches of snow.
Snow continues to blanket the street on Tuesday, January 21, 2025 on Hummingbird Avenue in Fort Walton Beach
Photo by Paige Aigret
Snow continues to blanket the street on Tuesday, January 21, 2025 on Hummingbird Avenue in Fort Walton Beach
