STORY: :: A rare snowstorm blankets parts of Florida,

covering beaches, lakes, and homes

:: Panama City, Florida

:: Fort Walton Beach, Florida

:: January 21, 2025

Local media called the storm historic as Governor Ron DeSantis declared a State of Emergency in response to the storm. Classes in some areas have been canceled and businesses closed.

The U.S. Gulf Coast storm is breaking snowfall records more than a century old in a southern region where flurries are unusual, as much of the United States remained in a dangerous deep freeze.

A snowstorm warning was in effect for 31 million people - from southern Texas east through Georgia and north to the Carolinas and into Virginia - until Wednesday (January 22) morning, the National Weather Service said. The storm was expected to crawl through Mississippi, Georgia and Florida early this week.