A cold front that started to impact the state at the end of the previous period continued to move through on Monday, November 22, producing light showers throughout much of morning and afternoon. The rainfall from the front, while widespread, did little to ease the continued dry conditions plaguing parts of the state. After the front cleared the state late Monday evening, a cold high pressure moved into the region that kept temperatures below normal through the middle of the week. Temperatures on Tuesday morning dropped into the lower 30s, and patchy frost was observed in some locations. Despite the sunny skies, high temperatures only reached the low to mid-50s by late Tuesday afternoon. With clear skies and calm winds, temperatures quickly fell overnight on Tuesday, and by Wednesday morning, many stations reported conditions that felt more like January, with temperatures in the mid-20s. The National Weather Services station near Andrews in Georgetown County measured a low of 24 degrees, which broke the previous daily record low at the station set in 1976.
The dry and clear weather pattern continued on Thursday, and temperatures were a bit warmer on Thanksgiving than earlier in the week ahead of an approaching cold front, with high temperatures reaching the low to mid-60s across the state. As the cold front moved through the state overnight, it produced limited rainfall, with most locations recording less than a tenth of an inch of rain. Behind the front, the cool, dry weather returned and lingered through the rest of the period. Minimum temperatures over the weekend ranged from the mid-20s to mid-30s, while the maximum temperatures hovered in the upper 50s to mid-60s.
(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 | 0.33 | 43.73 | 1.8 |
| Greer Airport | 0.16 | 46.12 | 1.3 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.29 | 33.53 | -6.3 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.14 | 43.64 | 2.4 |
| Orangeburg Airport | Trace | 36.38M | -3.9M |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.10 | 49.16 | 9.1 |
| Florence Airport | 0.18 | 38.90 | -2.8 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.10 | 42.47 | -2.7 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | 0.04 | 55.36 | 6.4 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.01 | 47.90M | 3.2M |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 49 degrees. Columbia: 56 degrees. Barnwell: 48 degrees. Mullins: 40 degrees.
Most of the state recorded only a tenth of an inch of rainfall during the period though some areas in the Pee Dee and Upstate recorded slightly higher amounts. Some CoCoRaHS observers in Chester and York counties reported 24-hour totals of over half an inch of rain ending on Monday, November 22, but recorded little to no ain during the rest of the period. Many locations across the state continued to report rainfall deficits for November. Combined with the lack of rain in September and October, a few stations could report one of their driest falls on record. The National Weather Service station at the Florence Regional Airport is on pace to record one of the top five driest Novembers. It could observe one of the driest September to November periods on its record since 1948.
The continued lack of rain across the state exacerbated the moderate drought conditions, and many streamflow gauges are reporting below-normal flows. The United States Drought Monitor depicted the moderate drought conditions (D1) along the Pee Dee and Wateree watersheds. Some gauges along the streams and tributaries of the Great Pee Dee River continued to report well-below normal flows, including the gauge on the Little Pee Dee near Galivants Ferry and the two along the Lynches River. Portions of the upper Broad and Santee watersheds reported below normal flows during the period. Across the ACE Basin and the Savannah River, streams and rivers continued to record average streamflow values for this time of year. All of the rivers in the state recorded heights below the flood stage during the period.
