SOUTH CAROLINA WEATHER AND CLIMATE

     Most of inland South Carolina experienced near normal winter weather 
for the first half of the week.  On Wednesday, January 15, a wind shift to 
a more southwesterly direction helped warm the state into the upper 50's 
and low 60's.  Counties along the immediate coast reported afternoon high 
temperatures near 70 degrees.  Early on Thursday morning a cold front 
passed through the upstate and eventually to the coast, causing brief, 
heavy rainshowers and scattered reports of thundershowers with high winds.  
A secondary arctic cold front quickly followed late Thursday into Friday 
with the season's coldest air.  Wind chill values across upstate sites were 
below zero Friday morning.  Daytime high temperatures remained in the 30's 
to low 40's.  Saturday morning low temperatures ranged from the single digits 
in the state's higher elevations to the mid 20's along the coast.  A weak 
upper level disturbance passed southeastward through the state on Sunday with 
scattered snowshowers upstate and flurries into the midlands.  Statewide 
temperatures for the period averaged 8 degrees below normal.

     The maximum observed temperature was 69 degrees on January 16 at 
Myrtle Beach.  The minimum observed temperature was 9 at Caesars Head on 
the 17th and Union on the 18th.  The heaviest official 24 -hour rainfall was 
recorded at Johnston and Sandhill with 1.20" ending at 7:00 a.m. on January 16.
Statewide rainfall for the period  averaged  0.7".
        
                   Precipitation
                  Period     1997         Deviation*          Temperature
Location          Total      Total        From Avg.          Maximum   Minimum
Greer             0.63       2.7          0.2A                 52       11
Charlotte, NC     0.44       2.0          0.2B                 52       15
Columbia          0.73       2.9          0.3A                 58       16  
Florence FAA      0.90       2.4          0.2B                 62       18   
Blackville        0.85       2.6          0.0A                 62       18
Augusta, GA       0.78       2.7          0.3A                 61       21  
Beaufort           NA        NA            NA                  NA       NA 
Charleston        0.05       2.3          0.2A                 67       23
Myrtle Beach      0.40       3.3          0.8A                 69       18
*A=Above, B=Below 
                                                              

                 Degree Days          
                  Actual 
               Jan. 1-19
              Cooling   Heating              
Columbia        0         386
Charleston      0         340
Greenville      0         451
                                                                                            
     Temperatures are expected to average near to above normal for the 
     week.  Rainfall is expected to be near normal.
     Sandhill Experiment Station in North Columbia reports an average 4-inch
     depth soil temperature of 34 degrees.
 

    River stages are above normal.
    Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 46 
    degrees.