(FROM THE NAPLES DAILY NEWS 2/12/2012)

The chill in the air this weekend may have stopped the streak but Southwest Florida is experiencing the warmest winter in five years.

"It's been much above-normal in Southwest Florida," said ABC-7 Chief Meteorologist John Patrick of winter temperatures. "Through Feb. 10 we've officially had 26 days in a row with temperatures above normal."

The warmer winter is the result of a pair of global weather patterns with roots thousands of miles from Florida. One is La Niña, when the sea surface temperature across the equatorial Eastern Central Pacific Ocean is lower than normal. The other is Arctic Oscillation, which affects the penetration of Arctic air into the middle of the nation.

Normal for this time of year in Southwest Florida, according to Patrick, is 76 degrees. Seventeen of those 26 warmer-than-average days reached the 80s. The key factor in Southwest Florida's temperate January climate is La Niña — the opposite number of the more infamous El Niño, the warm oceanic phase that accompanies high air surface pressure in the western Pacific.

"(In a period of La Niña) the water of the Pacific Ocean cools below normal, which causes a ridge of warmer than normal temperatures for a lot of the United States," Patrick said. "The exception, usually, is the Pacific Northwest, where it's cooler than normal."

The mild weather served as a nice change of past from past winter seasons, when Southwest Florida experienced longer cold spells, Patrick said.

In addition to the warmest January since 2006, Naples recorded it third driest January with just 0.17 inches of precipitation.

"The downside to a La Niña winter pattern is the lack of sufficient rain," Patrick said. "La Niña patterns tend to be drier than normal in Southwest Florida, which usually leads to a very active brush fire season by March, April and May before the rainy season starts."

The Florida Fire Service responded to 109 wildfires in Collier County last year, compared to just 51 the previous year. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, drought development is likely across the state until March 31.

"Drought conditions are wildfire conditions," said Victor Hill, wildlife mitigation specialist with the Florida Fire Service.

"The key is we're doing everything we can to reduce wildfire risks, but we don't have unlimited resources to erase the potential, so the onus is on residents to protect their properties."