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How cold is it? Worker falls on black ice... in Tampa Bay

It appears water from a nearby construction site somehow leaked onto the road.
An area of black ice formed Thursday, Jan. 18, on the Veterans Expressway near Hutchison Road.

TAMPA, Fla. -- This doesn't happen often -- perhaps not in anyone's recent memory -- in Tampa Bay: black ice.

Florida Highway Patrol shut down the left southbound lane on the Veterans Expressway at Hutchinson Road around 6:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 18, for what appeared to be a glistening sheet of ice.

One worker inspecting the ice slipped and fell as cars passed by. Crews completely closed the southbound lanes of the expressway for some time to scrape the ice away and place sand on the concrete.

It appears water from a nearby construction site somehow leaked onto the road.

Photos: How cold is it? Worker falls on black ice... in Tampa Bay

Black ice appears clear and is called "black ice" because of its transparency; you can see the concrete underneath. If the road's surface is at or below 32 degrees, water on top of it can freeze.

Tampa's temperature dipped to 29 degrees, tying a record set in 1981.

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