Freezing Temperatures Spark Warning to Florida's Homeless

Temperatures in Florida dipped below freezing on Wednesday morning, prompting a weather warning for vulnerable populations.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued two urgent weather messages on Wednesday morning for north and northeast Florida and southeast Georgia. Both were freeze warnings, with one expiring at 8 a.m. ET on Wednesday morning. The second will go into effect from 2 a.m. to 8 a.m. ET Thursday morning.

"Appropriate action should be taken to ensure tender vegetation and outdoor pets have adequate protection from the cold temperatures," the warning said. "Young children, the elderly and the homeless are especially vulnerable to the cold. Take measures to protect them."

Thousands of homeless live in Florida. Duval County, Florida, was among the locations experiencing low temperatures. The county has a population of more than 1,000 homeless people, according to the Florida Department of Health.

NWS meteorologist Angie Enyedi told Newsweek that a frost advisory has been issued for inland areas of Duval County for Wednesday night, with temperatures expected to be in the mid-30s. Warmer temperatures will occur near the Atlantic coast.

"It's not unusual to have frost and freeze warnings this time of year," she said. "We're going to start seeing temperatures near normal lows for the eastern part of the county and below normal for the western part of the county."

The Jacksonville airport reports an average low of 45 degrees this time of year.

Cool temperatures will remain throughout the day, with the Jacksonville NWS office expecting highs in the low 50s to high 60s.

"Freezing temps were observed across SE GA, Suwannee Valley & along the I-10 corridor," the office posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday morning. "Cloudy skies will keep temps cool today with highs in the low 50s to mid 60s."

Cold temperatures are not uncommon for northern and central Florida. Earlier this month, Floridians woke up to frost in Marion County, which is northwest of Orlando.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Adam Douty previously told Newsweek that although those temperatures were below normal, they weren't unheard of.

"It's quite a bit below normal, but definitely not unheard-of for the time of year," Douty said. "It can definitely get cold in northern and central Florida."

Frost forms when temperatures are cold enough to freeze dew to ice. Temperatures must be at 32 degrees or below, but frost can still crystallize even if outside temperatures are above freezing because temperatures can be as much as 10 degrees colder close to the ground.