Monday, December 11, began with the state under a dome of cold high pressure. Caesars Head had a 24-degree morning low temperature and reported 6 inches of snow remaining on the ground.
A moisture-starved cold front swept over the state on Tuesday. Frontal passage brought 23 mph winds, gusting 33 to mph, at the airport in Walterboro. Behind the cold front, cold air pushed the 32-degree isotherm to the coast Wednesday morning. The North Myrtle Beach Airport had a morning low temperature of 30 degrees and an afternoon high temperature of 49 degrees. Another dry frontal passage occurred Thursday. Thursday's high temperature was 65 degrees at USC in Columbia.
Dry conditions persisted Friday and most of the weekend. On Sunday, a low pressure system over the Gulf coast migrated eastwards bringing warm southwesterly winds and triggering light rain showers over the northern Midlands and the Upstate late Sunday. The Greenwood Airport reported 0.02 inches of rain while other observers reported only a trace of rain.
(Note: The highest and lowest official temperatures and highest precipitation totals provided below are based on observations from the National Weather Service Cooperative Observer network and the National Weather Service's Forecast Offices.)
The highest official temperature reported was 66 degrees at Orangeburg on December 17.
The lowest official temperature reported was 16 degrees at Jocassee on December 11.
The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 0.05 inches at Pickens for the period ending on December 16.
The state average rainfall for the seven-day period was 0.0 inches.
| Weekly* | Since Jan 1 | Departure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson Airport | 0.00 | 50.33 | 7.7 |
| Greer Airport | 0.00 | 51.54 | 6.1 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.00 | 43.78 | 3.6 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.00 | 46.28 | 3.2 |
| Orangeburg Airport | 0.00 | 37.03 | -8.3 |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.00 | 43.28 | 1.3 |
| Florence Airport | 0.00 | 41.27 | -0.2 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.00 | 47.66 | -2.9 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | 0.00 | 52.44 | 2.9 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.00 | 52.81 | 6.3 |
| *Weekly rainfall totals ending midnight Sunday. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton 45 degrees. Columbia 50 degrees. Barnwell 42 degrees. Mullins 37 degrees
Upstate river stages were below normal to much below normal.
Midlands and Pee Dee river stage were below normal to much below normal .
Lowcountry river stages were normal.
Charleston Harbor water temperature: 54 degrees.
Fripp Nearshore Buoy (Station 41033): 55 degrees.
