Published on January 22, 2025 at 5:09 p.m.
We’re in the depths of winter, and so far, Pensacola, Florida, is ahead of Montreal in the race to be the snowiest city of 2025. Explained.
Historic storm
Tuesday’s storm over southeast Florida was historic. Several records were shattered. In Mobile, Alabama, we had never seen 22 cm of snow like it fell during the day Tuesday. New Orleans received 24 cm of snow, again a record. We even saw hockey players skating on Canal Street, a major artery in the cradle of jazz. But the most impressive number is 25. That’s the number of inches of snow that fell in places in Pensacola, Florida.
IN PICTURES: A fascinating phenomenon in the Laurentians.
Lack of snowplows
Yes, Pensacola is located in northern Florida, but the average temperature in mid-January is still 16°C. In New Orleans, we are talking about 18°C as the average daytime temperature, January 20. These communities are therefore poorly prepared to deal with such snowfall and temperature.
Tragic
Unfortunately, as of Tuesday morning, there have been nine deaths due to weather conditions. More than 3,000 flights have been canceled in the Gulf of Mexico region since Monday evening. Car traffic was obviously a nightmare, and around thirty roads were closed to all traffic.
The snow has forgotten us
Meanwhile, in Montreal, we are still waiting for the first real broadside of the season. The heaviest snowfall in 24 hours was only 7.8 cm, and it was on December 8, so not even in 2025. In Calgary, which still receives enough snow to have held Winter Olympics in 1988, no more than 2.8 cm of snow was observed in one day. Do you think our Great North can save the day? In Yellowknife, Yukon, the largest snowfall so far in 2025 was 9.2 cm.
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Between Baton Rouge and Matane…
Pensacola, Florida beat us easily, having received nearly 25 cm of snow in places. Even if we add up all the snow accumulated since January 1st in Montreal, we cannot surpass this Florida city. We can’t even claim second place, as Lafayette, Louisiana, has received 11 inches of snow since Tuesday morning.
Nothing on the radar
And Florida’s domination could last for several more days. No major snowfall is on the radar for the next seven days. There will be a few flakes brought by a clipper, but for the Montreal region, it should not exceed 3 cm. It’s only a postponement, however, because the chances of another snowstorm in Florida are extremely, but extremely slim.
With the collaboration of Nicolas Lessard, meteorologist.
