Time Capsule for February 6, 2004

 

            Hi everybody and welcome! I hope everybody has been enjoying the much-needed rains we have been receiving over the past several days. The rain has subsided some but I can see from the Miami and Tampa radar sites that much more rain is on the way. Tonight, Saturday, should definitely be a soaker. So far, I have recorded .33 inches of rain on Friday, January 30th and .43 inches on Saturday, January 31st. I have recorded a monthly total so far of 1.69 inches. This total may be increased by about a half inch before the rain event is over on Sunday. All this rain is being caused by a northward moving warm front that actually is the same front that moved through earlier as a cold front. The front then stalled to our south for several days and is now being pulled north by a trailing low-pressure area in the Gulf.

 I must say, I would much rather have the rain then the 12-degree temperatures that they are experiencing in Chicago. Springfield, Massachusetts is also experiencing temperatures in the 20’s and below. Is this paradise or what?

With Valentines Day right around the corner, I know many of you are thinking about sending your special some one cut roses or possibly some other variety of cut flowers. These flowers are beautiful when you receive them but have a very short life span. Why not buy a beautiful container rose instead? The beauty then can be cherished for many years to come.

            Container roses come in many varieties and colors. Unlike many plants in our part of Florida, Roses enjoy lots of bright sunshine. You can plant the roses either in the ground or you might want to try growing them in containers if you are limited in space or live in an apartment. Be sure to use a loose high quality-planting medium for your treasures. Roses like their roots evenly moist. When watering, it is best to water the roots and try to keep the leaves dry. This minimizes the chance for fungus diseases to develop on the plants. Use a high quality rose fertilizer on a regular basis for best results. If your plants do develop any signs of insects or disease, a product called Funginex is the best remedy.  Follow label directions for application. With a little care and some time, you can have a rose garden that will be the envy of your neighbors. Happy planting!

 

Now on to the time Capsule…..

            Here are some local past weather events.

 

February 7-10, 1835 -- The earliest well-documented severe freeze. Low temperature of 4 degrees was reported at Tallahassee, 8 degrees at Jacksonville and Pensacola. The edges of the St. Johns River froze and ice was reported in Pensacola Bay. The temperature was below freezing for over two days at St. Augustine. All citrus was killed.

February 7-8, l97l -- Statewide -- Severe squall lines ahead of a strong cold front ripped through Florida causing heavy rain of three to 5", several tornadoes, many reports of hail and funnel clouds, and wind gusts of 50 to 65 mph. Hardest hit was the community of Gulf Breeze in Escambia Co. where a predawn waterspout on the 7th came ashore as a tornado, destroying an apartment complex and injuring 112 people. Two more people were injured on the morning of the 7th when severe thunderstorm winds and golf ball size hail hit near Chipley in Washington County. In Tallahassee one man drowned when he fell into a drainage ditch. Another man drowned when his boat capsized while fishing in Highlands County.

February 8-9, 1895 -- statewide -- Severe Freeze with reported low temperatures of 11 degrees at Tallahassee, 16 at Ocala, and 19 at Orlando. This freeze followed the December 1894 freeze and due to intervening mild weather citrus trees were greatly damaged.

February 8, l986 -- afternoon -- Central Florida -- Severe Weather Outbreak --A tornado near Bartow, Polk County, severely damaged l4 homes and caused minor damage to six others. A tornado overturned a mobile home in Hudson, Pasco County, and another tornado occurring from Volusia to Pierson in Volusia County damaged a campground, then moved on to damage fern-growing sheds and cause injury to a man when a branch fell on his mobile home. In Bradenton, Manatee County, a tornado hit a flea market, severely injuring a man and slightly injuring three others. Twenty cars were damaged by high winds on the Pinellas County coast. A firefighter was injured in Manatee County when lightning struck nearby. Many reports of 0.75 inch in diameter hail were received. A boat was overturned on Lake Kissimmee by high wind and its occupant drowned.

February 9, 1973 -- Martin Co., Port Salerno -- A tornado ripped through Port Salerno just before midnight demolishing a church, twisting off roofs on houses and an apartment building and snapping power lines and trees along its path. Residents heard roaring like a freight train and felt a vacuum. One person was hospitalized.

February l0, l986 -- Jackson Co., Grand Ridge -- A tornado destroyed a brick house. Three other houses and a barn were damaged.

February 11, l98l -- Lake County -- A small tornado struck a section of downtown Leesburg destroying a service station, damaged several buildings, and knocked the windows out of several cars.

February 12, 1975 -- Columbia Co., Fort White -- A small tornado damaged two small frame houses and a service station.

February 13-14, 1899 -- Statewide -- Severe Freeze with reported low temperatures of -2 degrees at Tallahassee, the all-time lowest recorded Florida temperature, six degrees reported at Gainesville, 12 at Ocala, and 20 at Orlando. Snow reported in Tallahassee.

February 13, l966 - Morning - Gadsden Co. - Thunderstorm Winds destroyed several tobacco barns, blew down trees and disrupted communications in the area.

February 14, l970 -- Palm Beach Co., Palm Beach Gardens -- A small tornado struck an isolated area and downed power lines.

February 15, l939 -- Polk Co. -- A tornado, reported as a "huge black funnel", moved into Bartow and destroyed a small home.

 February 15, l991 -- St. Johns Co., St. Augustine -- Strong winds to 60 mph downed power lines, trees, sheds, signs, roofs. The winds whipped up at least l50 brush fires in various sections of the state. The winds capsized an l8 ft boat, drowning two men.

            Here are some National past weather events…

February 7, 1988 -- Twenty-two cities in the eastern U.S. reported record low temperatures for the date, including Binghamton N.Y. with a reading of 5 degrees below zero. Snow blanketed southern Louisiana, with three inches reported at Cameron.

 

February 7, 1990 -- A slow moving cold front spread heavy snow across the state of Utah. Storm totals ranged up to 31 inches at Alta, with 24 inches at reported Brighton and 23 inches at Snowbird. Bitter cold weather prevailed across Alaska for the thirteenth day in a row, with morning lows of -42 degrees at Fairbanks, -48 degrees at Nenana, and -54 degrees at Bettles. Anchorage Alaska reported a record low of 23 degrees below zero.

February 8, 1987 -- A powerful storm produced blizzard conditions in the Great Lakes Region. Winds gusted to 86 mph at Janesville Wis. and Cleveland Ohio received 12 inches of snow. North winds of 50 to 70 mph raised the water level of southern Lake Michigan two feet, and produced waves 12 to 18 feet high, causing seven million dollars damage along the Chicago area shoreline. It was the most damage caused by shoreline flooding and erosion in the history of the city of Chicago.

February 8, 1989 -- A winter storm over California produced snow from the beaches of Malibu to the desert canyons around Palm Springs, and the snow created mammoth traffic jams in the Los Angeles Basin. Sixteen cities in the western U.S. reported record low temperatures for the date. Marysville Calif. reported an all-time record low reading of 21 degrees above zero.

February 9, 1987 -- A storm off the Atlantic coast produced high winds and heavy snow in the northeastern U.S., with blizzard conditions in eastern Massachusetts. Wind gusted to 80 mph and 23.4 inches of snow-produced drifts eight feet high at Cape Cod Mass. It was the worst blizzard in thirty years for the Cape Cod area. Winds in some of the mountains and ridges of the Appalachian Region gusted to 100 mph.

February 10, 1987 -- A storm in the northeastern U.S. produced heavy snow in southeastern Maine. Grand Falls and Woodland received 15 inches, mainly during the early morning hours, while most of the rest of the state did not even see a flake of snow.

February 11, 1899 -- Perhaps the greatest of all arctic outbreaks commenced on this date. The temperature plunged to 61 degrees below zero in Montana. At the same time a "Great Eastern Blizzard" left a blanket of snow from Georgia to New Hampshire. The state of Virginia took the brunt of the storm, with snowfall totals averaging 30 to 40 inches.

February 11, 1983 -- The Middle Atlantic Coast States and southern New England were in the midst of a major snowstorm. In Pennsylvania, the storm produced 21 inches at Philadelphia, 24 inches at Harrisburg, and 25 inches at Allentown, establishing record 24-hour totals and single storm totals for those locations. New York City received 22 inches of snow, and 35 inches was reported at Glen Gary, located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia. Windsor Locks Conn. received a record 19 inches of snow in 12 hours. The storm resulted in forty-six deaths, thirty-three of which occurred when a freighter capsized and sank off the Maryland/Virginia coast. Heavy snow was reported from northeastern Georgia to eastern Maine.

February 14, 1940 -- A "Saint Valentine's Day Blizzard" hit the northeastern U.S. Up to a foot and a half of snow blanketed southern New England, and whole gales accompanied the heavy snow stranding many in downtown Boston.

February 14, 1990 -- Valentine's Day was a snowy one for many parts of the western and central U.S. Five to ten inches of snow fell across Iowa, and 6 to 12 inches of snow blanketed northern Illinois, and strong northeasterly winds accompanied the heavy snow. Air traffic came to a halt during the evening at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, where 9.7 inches of snow was reported. More than 250 traffic accidents were reported around Des Moines IA during the evening rush hour. An ice storm glazed east central sections of Illinois, causing twelve million dollars damage in Champaign County alone