The main weather stories during the period were the continued dry conditions and temperatures that resembled a roller coaster ride, with diurnal temperature swings of up to 40 degrees each day.
On Monday, November 29, morning temperatures across the state were roughly ten degrees cooler than normal, ranging from the upper 20s to the mid-30s. Under mostly sunny skies, daytime temperatures reached the 50s. The cooler than normal low temperatures persisted through mid-week. Minimum temperatures on Tuesday morning felt more like January, as they dropped into the 20s statewide, with upper 20s reported at some of the coastal stations. However, temperatures rose into the low 60s during the afternoon. Wednesday was the last morning with brisk morning temperatures, with lows in the upper 20s to lower 30s. With high pressure positioned to the south of the region, temperatures climbed into the upper 60s and low 70s across the state.
By Thursday, breezy conditions, wind gusts up to 20 mph, very warm temperatures, and low relative humidity values combined to create high fire danger conditions across the state. Overnight lows in the mid-30s to low 40s quickly climbed into the mid-70s by late afternoon, nearly fifteen degrees above normal. Friday was the warmest day during the period, with high temperatures more like the end of September than the start of December. New daily high-temperature records were set at the following locations.
| December 3, 2021 (deg. F.) | Previous Date Record / Year (deg. F.) |
|
|---|---|---|
| Anderson County Airport | 78 | 76 / 1970 |
| Columbia Metropolitan Airport | 82 | 79 / 1991 |
| Greenville-Spartanburg Int'l Airport | 79 | 73 / 2012 |
| University of South Carolina - Columbia | 84 | 80 / 1998 |
High level clouds kept maximum temperatures from being as high on Saturday, as morning lows in the 40s rose to the mid and upper 70s. Sunday was cooler than Saturday, but temperatures were still five to ten degrees warmer than normal. The last King Tide event of 2021 started during the end of the period. The Charleston Harbor tidal gauge recorded a value of 7.37 ft. mean lower low water (MLLW) on Saturday morning and 7.42 ft. MLLW on Sunday morning. Shallow coastal flooding was reported in low-lying areas along the South Carolina coast.
(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 | 0.00 | 43.73 | 1.1 |
| Greer Airport | 0.00 | 46.12 | 0.3 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.00 | 33.53 | -7.0 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.00 | 43.64 | 1.7 |
| Orangeburg Airport | 0.00 | 36.38M | -4.5M |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.00 | 49.16 | 8.4 |
| Florence Airport | 0.00 | 38.90 | -3.4 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.00 | 42.47 | -3.4 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | 0.00 | 55.36 | 5.7 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.00 | 47.90M | 2.5M |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 52 degrees. Columbia: 59 degrees. Barnwell: 51 degrees. Mullins: 55 degrees.
No rainfall was reported across the state during the period, and November ended with a statewide precipitation total of 0.88 inches, making it the eighth driest November on record since 1895. Most locations report rainfall deficits for November, and rainfall totals of less than two inches. The Columbia area recorded its third driest November since 1887. The National Weather Service station at the Florence Regional Airport reported its fourth driest November and its second driest September to November periods on its record since 1948.
With another week of no rain measured in the state, streamflow values dropped across all four major watersheds. Gauges along the streams and tributaries of the Great Pee Dee, Santee, and Wateree rivers continued to report well-below normal flows. This includes less than 10% of normal values at the gauges on the Little Pee Dee near Galivants Ferry, the Black River near Kingstree, and the Santee River near Pineville. The dry and warm weather exacerbated the moderate drought conditions. The United States Drought Monitor depicted severe drought conditions (D2) along the Pee Dee and Wateree watersheds. All of the rivers in the state recorded heights below the flood stage during the period.
