The high pressure would dominate the weather pattern for much of the week, as a cold front pushed through the state on Monday, March 18. Ahead of the front, daytime temperatures were slightly below normal to near normal, with highs in the lower 60's in the Upstate to the low 70's closer to the coast. As the front cleared the region, breezy conditions, with northwest winds sustained at 15 mph, were noted at many of the National Weather Service (NWS) airport stations across the Midlands and Upstate. Morning lows on Tuesday, March 19, were close to ten degrees below normal, with temperatures in the mid-30's to low 40's across the state. Light winds overnight helped keep temperatures from dropping to the frost and freeze advisory thresholds. High temperatures were cooler than Monday, with stations reporting maximum temperatures in the mid-50's across much of the state.
High tide values at the Charleston Harbor tidal gauge observed an astronomical high tide value of 7.24 ft. mean lower low water (MLLW) on Tuesday morning, which caused shallow coastal saltwater flooding in low-lying areas. The following morning, the tidal gauge reached 7.42 ft. MLLW and additional saltwater flooding occurred on streets and roads in downtown Charleston. The low temperatures on Wednesday, March 20, were between 10 and 15 degrees below normal, and many NWS stations across the state reported their top 10 coldest March 20 on record. Portions of the Piedmont and Upstate measured minimum temperatures in the upper 20's. An area of low pressure formed off the Georgia-South Carolina coast and moved to the northeast, creating light shower activity throughout Wednesday for portions of the Pee Dee region. The highest total, 0.96 inches, came from the NWS station in Mullins, but most of the CoCoRaHS and NWS stations reported less than half an inch of rain. Cloudy skies kept daytime temperatures in the low-to-mid 50's along the coast, while mid-to-upper 60's were reported in the Midlands and Upstate.
On Thursday, March 21, a weak cold front crossed through the state with limited moisture and a few gusty winds. Even with the re-enforcing shot of cooler air, temperatures on Thursday climbed into the upper 60's. A stronger front moved across the region late Thursday night into Friday morning. Behind the front, another area of high pressure built into the region and despite temperatures on Friday starting in the upper 30's to low 40's, maximum temperatures rose to the upper 60's to low 70's. The weather over the weekend continued to be influenced by the strong high pressure, with mostly clear skies and dry weather. The temperatures on both Saturday and Sunday morning were observed in the mid-30's to low 40's, though high temperatures on Saturday topped out in the upper 60's to low 70's. The maximum temperatures on Sunday reached nearly 80 degrees in parts of the Midlands, slightly above normal for the time of year.
(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.)| Weekly* | Since Jan 1 | Departure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson Airport | Trace | 12.77 | 1.6 |
| Greer Airport | Trace | 14.82 | 3.5 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 0.10 | 13.14 | 3.4 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | Trace | 6.36 | -3.8 |
| Orangeburg Airport | 0.00 | 5.89 | -4.8 |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.00 | 7.16 | -4.0 |
| Florence Airport | 0.41 | 6.39 | -1.9 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.09 | 5.01 | -5.0 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | Trace | 2.99 | -6.5 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | Trace | 5.08 | -4.3 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 55 degrees. Columbia: 59 degrees. Barnwell: 53 degrees. Mullins: 52 degrees.
The rainfall totals across the Palmetto State ranged from no observed rain across much of the Lowcountry, southern Midlands, and Upstate, to up to an inch in portions of the Pee Dee Region, especially in parts of Chesterfield, Dillon, Horry and Marion counties. With the predominately dry conditions across the state, reported streamflow values in the Upstate dropped back to within the normal range for this time of year. The year-to-date rainfall totals in the Upstate continued to be between four and eight inches above normal. Locations in the Midlands and interior portions of the Lowcountry and Pee Dee regions missed out on the rainfall over the seven-day period, but streamflow values remained near normal for the second week in a row. The same area of the state has measured five to ten inches of rainfall so far in 2019. The rainfall was confined to parts of the upper Pee Dee, causing rivers in the watershed to remain below minor flood stage. Areas south of the Interstate 95 corridor are running four to eight inches of rain below normal through the first three months of the year, having received less than five inches of rain since the beginning of the year. Streamflow levels in the Lowcountry are below normal, with some area rivers, such as the North Fork of the Edisto near Orangeburg, reporting flows well below normal, nearly 300 cubic feet per second less than the long-term average.
Charleston Harbor (CHTS1): 60.8 degrees.
Capers Nearshore Buoy (Station 41029): 61.2 degrees.
Fripps Nearshore Buoy (Station 41033): 61.3 degrees.
