The main weather story was the multiple fronts that moved through the region during the week, causing an unsettled weather pattern. On Monday, May 15, a stationary front in Georgia set off isolated showers across the state. The increased moisture caused morning lows to be warmer than usual, but the daytime temperatures were near normal for the middle of May. By Tuesday, the stationary front shifted north as another front approached from the west, increasing chances of showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening. Wind damage from thunderstorms was reported in parts of the Upstate, including Anderson, Greenville, Pickens, and Oconee counties, a strong storm in Jasper County produced penny-sized hail, and a personal weather station reported a 50-mph wind gust. The National Weather Service (NWS) station at the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport reported a daily rainfall total of 2.21 inches, breaking the previous record of 1.40 inches in 1983.
One cold front moved through while the other was still pushing through the state on Wednesday, May 17, helping develop another round of scattered showers and strong thunderstorms. Storms in the Charleston area produced wind gusts up to 58 mph, quarter-sized hail, and heavy rain. On Thursday, a stalled frontal boundary in the Midlands triggered heavy rain across the central and eastern portions of the state. Most of the Midlands recorded between two and four inches of rain, with some isolated higher values. The heavy rain also coincided with high tide, and the Charleston Harbor tidal gauge measured a tide of 8.08 ft MLLW, as moderate to major coastal flooding was reported in low-lying areas of the coast, including Pawleys Island, Folly Beach, James Island, and downtown Charleston. With cold-air damming conditions in the region, the high temperatures were ten to fifteen degrees below normal, with highs reaching the low 70s.
A weak area of low pressure, which formed off the coast on Thursday, started to move to the northeast on Friday. Some additional showers developed during the morning and early afternoon, but conditions cleared throughout the day. Another cold front crossed the area on Saturday, producing additional scattered showers and thunderstorms. High pressure behind the front built into the region on Sunday, with drier conditions and seasonable temperatures.
(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 | 1.20 | 23.52 | 5.3 |
| Greer Airport | 2.43 | 28.67 | 9.5 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.43 | 18.23 | 1.6 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 3.02 | 22.33 | 6.9 |
| Orangeburg 2 (COOP) | 1.17M | 19.67M | 2.2M |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 1.08 | 24.13 | 7.8 |
| Florence Airport | 0.59 | 16.70 | 2.1 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 1.32 | 13.41 | -1.1 | Charleston Air Force Base | 0.49 | 12.99 | -2.0 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 2.68 | 16.45 | 1.3 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. s - denotes total with suspect data. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 68 degrees. Columbia: 70 degrees. Barnwell: 65 degrees. Mullins: 64 degrees.
The main weather story was the multiple fronts that moved through the region during the week, causing an unsettled weather pattern. On Monday, May 15, a stationary front in Georgia set off isolated showers across the state. The increased moisture caused morning lows to be warmer than usual, but the daytime temperatures were near normal for the middle of May. By Tuesday, the stationary front shifted north as another front approached from the west, increasing chances of showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening. Wind damage from thunderstorms was reported in parts of the Upstate, including Anderson, Greenville, Pickens, and Oconee counties, a strong storm in Jasper County produced penny-sized hail, and a personal weather station reported a 50-mph wind gust. The National Weather Service (NWS) station at the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport reported a daily rainfall total of 2.21 inches, breaking the previous record of 1.40 inches in 1983.
The 14-day averages for most stream flow values in the state’s watersheds returned to average flow values; however, areas that received heavy rainfall during the period saw streamflow increases in some of the smaller tributaries. Even with rain in the Pee Dee, some flows dropped below average, especially along parts of the Black Creek and Lynches River. The heavy rain caused some river heights to increase, with a few river height gauges in the Edisto and Savannah River basins reaching the action stage and minor flood stage. Elsewhere across the state, river heights remained below the action stage.
