SOUTH CAROLINA WEATHER AND CLIMATE

December 20 - 26, 2004


WEATHER SUMMARY

Early morning low temperatures on Monday fell to their lowest of the season with single digits reported in the highest elevations. The Charleston City peninsula recorded 29 degrees. The first day of Winter occurred on Tuesday under cold and clear, blue skies. A rapid warming followed the exiting cold air mass on both Wednesday and Thursday. Sites east of the Piedmont reported afternoon high temperatures in the 70's. Clouds and chilling northeast winds were observed on Christmas Day. Late in the evening, a mixture of rain, sleet, freezing rain and snow began to develop over the central and coastal sections. By sunlight on Sunday, a light coating of ice had disrupted travel and caused power failures. For the period, the state average temperature was four degrees below normal.

The highest official temperature reported was 77 degrees at Allendale on December 23. The lowest official temperature reported was 6 degrees at Caesars Head on the morning of December 20. The heaviest 24-hour rainfall reported was 1.04 inches at Rimini on December 26. The average statewide rainfall for the period was 1.1 inches.

PRECIPITATION AND TEMPERATURE DATA

                           
                            Precipitation                    
                       Weekly   Jan 1  Deviation     
                        Total   Total   From Avg
         Greer           1.40    47.7       -2.0
      Columbia           0.73    41.7       -6.1          
    Orangeburg           1.26    40.5       -6.1
 Charlotte, NC           0.70    44.2       +1.1 
   Augusta, GA           0.89    40.6       -3.5 
      Florence           1.43    42.9       -1.3           
  Myrtle Beach           0.48    45.5       +0.2
    Charleston           0.88    39.2      -11.8         
  Savannah, GA  	 1.41    37.2      -11.9

Weekly rainfall totals ending midnight Sunday.            
                           
                        
                                   
    

SOIL

4 inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 45 degrees.

RIVERS AND SURF

South Carolina river stages were near to below normal. Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 47 degrees.


sco@water.dnr.state.sc.us
http://water.dnr.state.sc.us/climate/sco/weekly/wk122604.html