Numerous thunderstorms formed following the afternoon peak heating on Monday. Columbia Owens AP measured 1.74 inches of rain in one hour. On Tuesday, a southeastward moving cold front brought another round of storms for sites along the coast. Edisto Beach received 2.15 inches of rain. At 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, Rock Hill AP reported a temperature of 63 degrees while both Charleston and Beaufort reported 90 degrees. Much cooler air overspread the entire state Wednesday with Johnston warming to only 69 degrees. Brisk northeast winds were noted into the weekend. On Saturday morning, a few sites chilled into the upper 40's. Mostly cloudy skies and areas of light rain were observed on Sunday, the last day of summer 2008. The state average temperature for the period was two degrees below normal.
The highest official temperature reported was 96 degrees at Ft. Moultrie and Givhans on September 15. The lowest official temperature reported was 45 degrees at Cedar Creek on the morning of September 20. The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 2.29 inches at McEntire ANG AP ending at 7:00 a.m. on September 16. The state average rainfall for the period was 0.5 inches.
Precipitation
Weekly Jan 1 Departure
Total Total from Avg
Greer 1.26 26.57 -11.0
Columbia 0.88 31.72 -6.4
Orangeburg 0.02 29.86 -8.3
Charlotte, NC 0.55 33.01 0.8
Augusta, GA 0.03 28.46 -6.1
Florence 2.14 40.39 5.6
N Myrtle Beach 0.04 38.07 3.5
Charleston 0.52 32.16 -8.9
Savannah, GA 0.00 31.44 -8.6
Weekly rainfall totals ending midnight Sunday.
4-inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 77 degrees.
South Carolina river stages were near to below normal. Ocean water temperatures at Springmaid Pier Myrtle Beach were reported at 80 degrees.
