A strong cold front is moving through the area and the low-pressure system will be followed by an even stronger cold front bringing in lower temperatures later in the week, according to the National Weather Service.

DAYTONA BEACH — Heavy wind, rain and cold on Monday kept crowds away from the beach all day. And area fern growers are on edge that much colder temperatures coming later this week will hurt an industry still recovering from the last two hurricanes.

Volusia County Beach Safety Capt. Mike Berard summed up the day as "new year, new weather."

Meteorologists with the National Weather Service in Melbourne said Volusia and Flagler residents should dress warm, and bring plants and pets indoors as temperatures fall starting Wednesday night.

Meteorologist Derrick Weitlich advised residents to take precautionary steps, especially if a freeze advisory is issued.

A strong cold front is moving through the area and the low-pressure system will be followed by an even-stronger cold front bringing lower temperatures later in the week, Weitlich said.

In Daytona Beach, the high for New Year's day was near 54 degrees with 30- to 35-mph winds, gusting in some areas up to 37 mph. In the New Smyrna Beach area, winds blew between 39 and 40 mph, meteorologist Jerry Combs said.

According to the Weather Service, expect a 30 percent chance of rain Tuesday with cloudy conditions and a high near 52. There will be 20 mph winds gusting up to 25 mph.

On Tuesday night, there's a chance of rain after 8 p.m. with showers likely after 2 a.m. Expect clouds with a steady temperature around 52. Winds of 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. There is a 60 percent chance of rain.

Starting Wednesday, rain chances will be 80 percent and Wednesday night into Thursday morning temperatures will be near freezing on the coast with mid- to upper-20s expected for inland Volusia.

Thursday night into early Friday, it will be near 30 degrees in Daytona Beach and coastal areas with the upper-20s expected inland, Weitlich said.

The high for Thursday and Friday will be 50 degrees, according to the Weather Service forecast.

The approaching cold temperatures caught many fern growers unprepared to protect their acres of green plants.

Hurricanes Matthew and Irma damaged a lot of the black covering, leaving a lot of foliage exposed to the elements, said David Register, executive vice president of Ferntrust Inc. in Seville.

"Production has been the lowest in 30 years," Register said. "The situation is already tight and any extra you lose makes it worse."

The loss of the coverings led to destruction of acres of fern, decreasing production and leaving a short supply, Register said.

Many growers have not completely repaired or replaced the shade for the fields of green decorative plants. Overhead irrigation system that are turned on to create a thin sheet of ice to protect plants during freezing temperatures are not functioning and farmers must now depend on sprinklers inside the fern fields, he said.

The stretch of could weather this week is not as cold as it has been in some years.

"It's not unusual to have this cold weather," Weitlich said. "Over the past two years freezes were not that widespread so it may appear the cold came earlier this year."

Daytona Beach experienced freezing weather on Jan. 24, 2016 when it was 31 degrees. But it wasn't as cold in 2016 as it was on Dec. 28, 2010.

"On Dec. 28, 2010, the temperature for Daytona and Volusia dropped to 24 degrees," Weitlich said.