The cold front pushed off the coast on Monday, March 17, with dry air slowly filtering into the region. Some clouds moved through the area and cleared during the evening. High temperatures on Monday were slightly cooler than normal, reaching only the mid-to-upper 60s. By Tuesday, high pressure had settled into the region, and temperatures rebounded to above-normal values through the middle of the week, with maximum temperatures in the upper 70s to low 80s, accompanied by persistent dry conditions and sunny skies.
A cold front arrived late on Thursday, bringing very light rain across the state. By Friday, high pressure prevailed, resulting in dry weather throughout the weekend. Morning temperatures dropped below freezing in parts of the Upstate, while isolated locations in the Midlands recorded low temperatures in the mid-30s. Winds increased during the afternoon, with gusts reaching up to 30 mph, and relative humidity values dropped below 25 percent, prompting the issuance of red flag warnings for Saturday. The critical fire weather conditions prompted the SC Forestry Commission to issue a statewide burn ban. Sunny skies, above-normal temperatures, and breezy conditions with southwesterly winds prevailed through Sunday.
(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 | Trace | 7.84 | -3.4 |
| Greer Airport | 0.00 | 8.41 | -2.9 |
| Charlotte, NC Airport | Trace | 6.33 | -3.3 |
| Columbia Metro Airport | 0.12 | 6.73 | -2.9 |
| Orangeburg 2 (COOP) | 0.15M | 7.55M | -3.2M |
| Augusta, GA Airport | 0.16 | 8.25 | -2.3 |
| Florence Airport | 0.13 | 7.14 | -1.3 |
| North Myrtle Beach Airport | 0.24 | 5.27 | -3.5 | Charleston Air Force Base | 0.03 | 4.77 | -4.1 |
| Savannah, GA Airport | 0.05 | 5.97 | -2.7 |
| *Weekly precipitation totals ending midnight Sunday. M - denotes total with missing values. s - denotes total with suspect data. |
4-inch depth soil temperature: Columbia: 57 degrees. Barnwell: 51 degrees. Mullins: 67 degrees.
After the rain on Sunday, March 16, most of the state received less than a quarter of an inch of rain, with some areas north of the Fall Line recording no precipitation during the period. There were a few locations in the Pee Dee that reported amounts over a quarter of an inch, but most of those stations had seven-day totals that were less than half an inch. The U.S. Drought Monitor map, released on Thursday, March 18, indicated that drought conditions had improved due to precipitation during the previous period. The severe drought (D2) conditions in parts of the Pee Dee were reduced in size, and some moderate (D1) designations have been removed in the Midlands.
Despite the limited rainfall during the period, most of the 14-day average streamflow south of the Fall Line reported values within the normal range; however, the gauge on the Little Pee Dee River at Galivants Ferry, and Pee Dee River at Pee Dee reported below-normal values, with the Waccamaw River near Longs continuing to record well below expected flows. Due to the lack of rain in the Upstate, many gauges in the Broad, Saluda, and Upper Savannah River basins recorded values below normal, and some gauges on smaller tributaries of the Saluda and Savannah rivers recorded values well below normal flows. The height levels at the river and the tidal gauges remained below the flood stage.
