Above-normal temperatures continued on Monday, April 29, and lasted through the rest of the work week. Maximum temperatures were five to ten degrees above average, with daytime highs in the mid- to upper 80s. The high pressure centered off the coast provided warmer weather. Still, southerly flow also brought moisture back into the area, and isolated showers and thunderstorms developed in portions of the state as an aloft cold front moved through the region.
Drier air filtered into the Southeast on Wednesday, May 1, as a surface high pressure and upper-level ridge built back into the area. Dense fog was reported early Thursday and Friday mornings across the Lowcountry, Midlands, and Pee Dee regions, with visibilities reduced to less than a quarter of a mile in some locations. Temperatures remained warm before approaching cold fronts and short waves, increasing rain chances across portions of the Midlands and Upstate.
The weather over the weekend was unsettled, with scattered to isolated thunderstorms. High pressure off the coast helped push additional moisture across the region, helping produce rain. The rain was heavy at times, and early Sunday morning, over an inch of rain fell in less than an hour, causing minor flooding in Columbia.
(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 | 1.30 | 21.32 | 4.9 |
| Greer Airport | 0.43 | 22.39 | 5.3 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 1.17 | 16.15 | 1.2 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 3.60 | 18.83 | 5.1 |
| Orangeburg 2 (COOP) | 0.09 | 13.96 | M-1.8 |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.91 | 12.70 | -2.2 |
| Florence Airport | 1.37 | 12.65 | -0.1 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.21 | 10.77 | -2.2 | Charleston Air Force Base | 0.30 | 17.34 | 3.8 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.13 | 14.56 | 1.1 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. s - denotes total with suspect data. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 69 degrees. Columbia: 72 degrees. Barnwell: Not Available. Mullins: 67 degrees.
While isolated showers and thunderstorms occurred during the work week, most of the rain recorded during the period fell during the weekend. Except for the Interstate 20 and 77 corridors, most of the state recorded less than half of an inch of rain, with less than a tenth of an inch reported along the coast. Areas with the highest totals ranged from one to two inches, with isolated totals of over four inches reported in Edgefield and Lexington counties. With warmer temperatures and drier weather, abnormally dry conditions (D0) were introduced in portions of the state in the latest release of the U.S. Drought Monitor.
With limited precipitation falling across the state's river basins over the past few periods, additional 14-day average streamflow values at gauges across the state dropped to below-normal flows; however, some gauges in the same areas still reported average streamflow values. The river height gauges across the state reported levels below the flood stage.
