A relentless “bomb cyclone” slammed into the Southeast this weekend, leaving coastal towns buried under massive snowdrifts and causing absolute chaos on the roads. While the Carolinas took the brunt of the historic snowfall, the storm’s reach was felt as far south as Florida, where frozen iguanas fell from trees and citrus farmers scrambled to save their crops from record-breaking cold.
North Carolina saw some of the most staggering totals. The mountain town of Faust was buried under 22.5 inches of snow, while Charlotte recorded 11 inches—more than triple its typical annual average.
The sheer volume of snow paralyzed travel, leading to over 1,300 reported crashes across North Carolina and Virginia alone. In one harrowing incident near Kannapolis, a 100-vehicle pileup forced the National Guard to step in to help clear the wreckage from Interstate 85.
READ: Florida Braces For Deep Freeze As Farmers Scramble To Save Winter Crops
The timing couldn’t be worse for a region already reeling. This new system hit while over 100,000 people in Tennessee and Mississippi were still waiting for power to be restored following a previous ice storm.
That earlier blast was linked to dozens of deaths and caused an estimated $105 billion to $115 billion in economic losses. Experts at AccuWeather suggest this latest weekend storm will add another $13 billion to $15 billion to that staggering bill.
Down in Florida, the weather turned surreal. Miami hit 35 degrees, breaking a record that had stood since 1909, while West Palm Beach saw its coldest temperatures in 36 years. Residents captured photos of icicles on the Universal Orlando globe, and the National Weather Service warned of “cold-stunned” iguanas falling from trees in South Florida.
The storm also brought fresh misery to the Outer Banks. Beyond the near-blizzard conditions that shut down Highway 12, the heavy surf caused another unoccupied home in Buxton to collapse into the ocean. It’s a grim trend for the area, marking the 28th home lost to coastal erosion since 2022.
READ: Florida Sends Predators Scorched-Earth Message After String Of Gruesome Takedowns
As the snow stops, the danger isn’t over.
With temperatures expected to hover in the teens and 20s through the beginning of the week, officials are warning that black ice and “dangerously cold” air will continue to make travel life-threatening. For now, the message from state troopers is simple: if you don’t have to be out, stay home.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
