On Monday, April 12, high pressure built into the area behind a cold front, with breezy conditions and clear skies. Morning temperatures in the mid-40s to upper 50s rose across the Palmetto State into the 80s in the afternoon, which is up to ten degrees above normal. The National Weather Service (NWS) station at the Beaufort MCAS recorded a high of 87 degrees, tying the daily record maximum temperature set back in 2008. A reinforcing cold front pushed through the region on Tuesday, helping conditions to remain dry, increasing some clouds. Highs were in the low to mid-80s, with lows in the upper 40s to mid-50s.
A couple of weak frontal boundaries moved through the area during the middle of the week. Winds out of the southwest provided a little moisture into the state triggering some light, scattered showers during the afternoon and late evening hours. With the passage of these boundaries, wind gusts up to 30 mph were reported at locations in the Midlands. Temperatures on Wednesday were above normal with overnight temperatures in the 50s and afternoon temperatures in the low to upper 80s, slightly above normal lows in the 50s, and were near normal by Thursday.
By Friday morning, the cold front was situated along the Gulf Coast and a weak high pressure settled into the region. Dewpoints dropped into the 40s, causing fire weather concerns across the region. Overnight temperatures were cooler than normal, especially in the Upstate with some stations recording temperatures in the upper 30s and low 40s, five or more degrees below normal. High temperatures were a few degrees below normal with highs in the upper 60s to mid-70s. Over the weekend, conditions remained dry despite some increased moisture in the area, which triggered some isolated and limited showers. Temperatures returned to near normal values for mid-April heading into the new work week.
(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 | 0.08 | 10.87 | -3.1 |
| Greer Airport | Trace | 15.03 | 0.7 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | Trace | 14.02 | 1.5 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.01 | 15.27 | 2.8 |
| Orangeburg Airport | Trace | 9.62M | -3.8M |
| Augusta, GA Airport | Trace | 16.24 | 2.4 |
| Florence Airport | 0.01 | 14.89 | 3.9 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.03 | 15.11 | 2.2 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | Trace | 12.08 | -0.1 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.02 | 11.73 | -0.4 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 62 degrees. Columbia: 66 degrees. Barnwell: 60 degrees. Mullins: 58 degrees.
Many locations across the state recorded less than a tenth of an inch of rain over the period. There were only a few localized stations that reported more than 0.20 inches, a NWS station in Antreville, and CoCoRaHS stations in Salem and Hilton Head.
Lack of rainfall across the region during the period allowed streamflow values to return to normal values, especially along rivers in the Upstate. The dryness caused a few of the gauges on smaller tributaries, such as Stevens Creek, Rocky Creek, and the Salkehatchie River to report below normal streamflow values. The only river in the state reporting a river height at flood state was the Santee River at Jamestown. However, the river continued to drop and moved out of minor flood stage during the period.
