Mall is 'snow' place for Southerners
BY ANN M. HENSON, GLOBE CORRESPONDENT 

MIAMI -- It snows in Miami nightly. And on weekend evenings, snow flurries happen twice.

The "magical snowfall" is courtesy of a local shopping mall. 

Diane Cardona, originally from Springfield, Mass., brought her children to the Dolphin Mall to see the snow Monday night. 

Asked whether she missed the trappings of holidays in the North -- including snow -- her answer was a resounding "no."

Her friend, Bill Pacetti of Miami, offered that he had never seen real snow.

Among the hundreds of adults and children in the Rambalas Plaza waiting for the snow to fall, Pacetti was typical. 

Finally, at 7 p.m. the flakes started flying.

Children stuck out their tongues for a taste, while parents noticed the snow left a wet sheen on their cameras. Children twirled and danced, and parents dusted the snow off their hair.

Up to 1,000 people have gathered at the Dolphin Mall, said Adam Williams, of MagicSnow Systems. He would not say how the snow is made.

"We don't want to give away all our secrets, but [the snow] is 100 percent biodegradable and mostly water," he said.

"It's not frozen, but it gives the appearance of being frozen. It's so wonderful to see the palm trees covered with frosty snow."

Despite a recent cold snap that dropped temperatures into the 40s, the odds are slim of southern Florida seeing a white Christmas.

Locals say the last time it snowed in Miami was in the late 1970s in the center of town. The flakes were short-lived, as they melted when they hit the ground.

© Copyright 2003 Globe Newspaper Company.

Contact: MagicSnow Systems
(310) 289-9852  /  MagicSnow.com