On Monday, November 12, a low-pressure system over the Gulf of Mexico began to lift northeast through the area, bringing ample moisture and widespread rain across portions of the state. The increased cloud cover and rain, combined with the strong cold-air damming set-up, caused maximum temperatures to range from the mid- to upper-40's in the Upstate and the 50's in the Midlands, which was close to 20 degrees below normal for this time of year. Along the coast, the high temperatures were in the upper 60's to low 70's, near normal for mid-November. The National Weather Service (NWS) Cooperative Weather Station in Santuck recorded a maximum temperature of 44 degrees, which broke the previous record of 47 degrees set back in 1968. Rain continued to fall throughout the day on Monday across the state and the rainfall totals submitted on the morning of November 13 showed another round of heavy precipitation had impacted the Upstate. CoCoRaHS stations in Greenville, Oconee, Pickens and Spartanburg counties reported up to 3.75 inches of rain. In downtown Greenville, flooding was reported on some of the low-lying roads, including Boiling Springs Road which flooded due to Brushy Creek coming out of its banks. The river gauges near Gramling on the Middle Tyger River and along Reedy River rose above flood stage due to the heavy rains. Outside of the Upstate, some of the CoCoRaHS stations in portions of the Midlands and Pee Dee regions reported between two and three inches of rain. Flash flooding was reported in downtown Columbia, as the river gauge on Rocky Branch Creek at Main and Whaley Streets crested about half a foot more than flood stage (7.2 ft), and standing water was reported on Beltline Blvd. A tree that had been loosened by saturated soil fell on and damaged a house in Abbeville.
The cold and rainy conditions persisted into Wednesday, November 14, and all the NWS stations across the state reported maximum temperatures more than 10 degrees below normal. The day was the top 10 coldest November 14 on record for many locations including Florence, Hartsville, Charleston, Aiken, Spartanburg and Anderson. The high temperature at the NWS station at the Charleston International Airport topped out at 59 degrees. A chance of wintry precipitation, including freezing rain, was forecasted for the higher elevations of the Upstate overnight Wednesday and into Thursday morning. The low temperatures on November 15 were normal for this time of year, mainly in the mid-to-upper 30's to lower 40's. However, under the continued influence of the cold air damming, some of the maximum temperatures did not get much higher than the morning lows. The NWS stations across the state reported high temperatures that were close to 20 degrees below normal, including the station in Caesars Head, which reported 39 degrees for the high (16 degrees below normal) and a low that morning of 31 degrees. While rain fell across parts of the state, many areas of the Lowcountry did not receive any beneficial precipitation. The Thursday, November 15, release of the National Drought Monitor continued to indicate dry (D0) to moderate (D1) drought conditions along the coast of Beaufort, Charleston and Jasper counties and inland to include Allendale, Berkley, Colleton, Dorchester and Hampton counties.
The atmospheric set-up that produced the cold air damming event that had impacted the state since the beginning of the week finally broke down, and on Friday, November 16, dry high pressure took back control of the weather. Maximum temperatures were still below normal but managed to climb to the upper 50's across much of the state. The NWS station at the Georgetown County Airport reported the highest temperature, 65 degrees, recorded across the entire state for the day. Under clear skies and calm conditions, the minimum temperature at the NWS stations in Graniteville and Fountain Inn dropped to 27 degrees on the morning of November 17. Maximum temperatures remained cool and near normal, with upper 50's in the Upstate and Midlands to the upper 60's near the coast. Despite a weak cold front approaching the state and producing clouds on Sunday, November 18, the dry weather and gradual warming trend continued with high temperatures across the Palmetto state near normal, with highs in the upper 50's to mid-60's.
(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 | 3.92 | 51.29 | 12.8 |
| Greer Airport | 5.28 | 55.61 | 14.2 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | 3.63 | 51.40 | 14.3 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 4.01 | 41.93 | 1.7 |
| Orangeburg Airport | 1.35 | 39.22 | -3.0 |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 3.38 | 48.72 | 9.8 |
| Florence Airport | 2.45 | 50.87 | 12.1 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 1.68 | 58.60 | 11.3 |
| Charleston Air Force Base | 2.40 | 47.00 | 0.0 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 1.16 | 34.63 | -9.4 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Clinton: 51 degrees. Columbia: 59 degrees. Barnwell: 53 degrees. Mullins: 53 degrees.
Rainfall totals over the 7-day period were normal to above normal, with the heaviest rainfall concentrated north and west of the Interstate 20 corridor, impacting portions of the Midlands and Upstate. The moderate to heavy rainfall caused some flash flooding and river flooding issues, and most of the rivers across the state reported an increase in streamflow values and stage heights. Some rivers, including the Congaree, Little Pee Dee, Pee Dee and Wateree, entered moderate flood stage due to the runoff from the recent heavy rains. The rivers and tributaries within the Pee Dee Watershed continued to report streamflow values that were much above normal for this time of year, with only the Waccamaw at Longs reporting normal streamflow.
Charleston Harbor (CHTS1): 63.3 degrees.
Capers Nearshore Buoy (Station 41029): 62.8 degrees.
Fripps Nearshore Buoy (Station 41033): Not Available.
