The period started with unsettled weather on Monday, February 24, as a warm front south of the region started to lift northward. Much of the state started the day with minimum temperatures in the mid-40s, but under cloud cover and rainfall the maximum temperatures at many locations struggled to get to the mid-50s. However, areas closer to the coast, such as the National Weather Service (NWS) station at the Charleston International Airport, observed highs in the mid-60s. As the frontal boundary began to move, the scattered showers gave way to more widespread rainfall, and by Tuesday morning, many CoCoRaHS observers in the Midlands measured between 1.50 and 2.00 inches of rain. Temperature trends for low and high temperatures continued to be slightly above normal through Wednesday, with minimum temperatures in the lower 50s and highs in the low to mid-60s. Scattered rainfall continued as a cold front approached the area, bringing a break from the rainfall through the rest of the period.
Behind the front, high pressure set up and provided dry westerly flow into the region. Strong wind gusts were recorded across the state overnight on Wednesday and into midday Thursday. Most of the NWS stations, including the locations at the Anderson Regional Airport, the Columbia Metropolitan Airport and the Rock Hill/York County Airport, observed gusts up to 30 mph. Cooler than normal temperatures, with overnight lows in the 30s and highs in the 50s, continued through the last few days of winter. Minimum temperatures on Sunday, March 1, came as a bit of a shock as calm winds and clear skies allowed the temperatures to drop into the low 20s, with some locations reporting temperatures in the upper teens for the first day of spring. Temperatures rebounded to near normal by the afternoon, with highs in the upper 50s to low 60s across the state.
(Note: The highest and lowest official temperatures and highest precipitation totals provided below are based on observations from the National Weather Service (NWS) Cooperative Observer network and the National Weather Service's Forecast Offices.)| Weekly* | Since Jan 1 | Departure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson Airport | 1.23 | 15.25 | 7.4 |
| Greer Airport | 0.89 | 16.62 | 8.7 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.75 | 10.57 | 3.7 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.53 | 11.32 | 4.0 |
| Orangeburg Airport | M | 8.55 | 0.9 |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.92 | 11.73 | 3.8 |
| Florence Airport | 0.42 | 9.63 | 3.4 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 1.01 | 7.8 | 0.6 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | 0.99 | 6.49 | -0.3 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.88 | 6.27 | -0.3 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 50 degrees. Columbia: 51 degrees. Barnwell: 46 degrees. Mullins: 41 degrees.
Rain continued to fall over the last few weeks of winter, producing one of the wettest December – February periods on record across South Carolina. By the end of February, the National Weather Service Office in Columbia reported 20.63 inches of rainfall since December 1, making this the wettest winter on record for the Columbia area since 1887. It was also the second wettest winter for the Greer area, with 23.63 inches, and the second wettest winter for Florence, with 16.30 inches measured at the airport. The NWS station at the Charleston International Airport recorded 13.06 inches, making it the 13th wettest on record at the location since 1937.
During the report period, the heaviest rains fell between the Interstate 85 corridor and the coast, with some localized reports of three inches in Berkeley, Colleton and Horry counties. Most locations across the state reported at least half an inch of rain, though some areas of Dillon and Marion counties recorded slightly more than a quarter of an inch. With rain falling steadily over the headwaters of the state’s watersheds over the past few weeks, river and stream gauges continued to report above normal to high streamflow levels due to the continued wet pattern. Some of the river gauges across the Coastal Plain observed levels at major and minor flood and were slowly falling. However, additional rainfall was forecast, which would keep area rivers high heading into the new work week.
