Drought in South Carolina, September 1 to 30, 2002

Name: Drought in South Carolina, September 1 to 30, 2002
Start: 2002-09-01T00:00
End: 2002-09-30T23:59
Location: South Carolina

September 1 to 30, 2002 · NWS CHS · 9 events in 9 counties and zones

Moderate drought conditions persisted throughout the month as several tropical systems impacted the region producing copious rainfall.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 9

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS CHS wrote it up.

Moderate drought conditions persisted throughout the month as several tropical systems impacted the region producing copious rainfall.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Charleston, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 31, 8:47 PM EST, 3 hours 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 8:47 PM EST, 3 hours 13 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
947 PM EDT SAT AUG 31 2002

EVENING SFC ANALYSIS INDICATED A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE EXTENDING
DOWN THE E SIDE OF THE APPALACHIANS AND A TROF ACROSS THE OFFSHORE
WATERS. RADAR IMAGERY SHOWED A DECREASE IN THE SHRA/TSRA ACTIVITY
ASSOCIATED WITH A MID LVL S/WV.  HOWEVER...ADDITIONAL SHRA WERE
DEVELOPING IN THE NE FLOW ALONG AND OFF THE COAST.

THE COASTAL -SHRA WL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AND MOVE INLAND OVERNIGHT.
SOME LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE SO WL LEAVE MENTION IN FCST.  WL
STAY WITH HIGH CHANCE POPS AND ONLY ADJUST TEMPS/WINDS A LITTLE.

MARINE...PESKY COASTAL TROUGH REMAINS E OF THE MARINE AREA THIS EVNG
WITH NE WINDS IN PLACE ACROSS ALL OF THE COASTAL WTRS. WL LIKELY
RAISE WINDS TO A SOLID 15 KTS BASED ON CURRENT TRENDS. SEAS IN THE
3-4 FT RANGE LOOK GOOD ACROSS WATERS TNGT BUT A SOLID 5 FT MAY BE A
BIT HIGH FOR THE GA OFFSHORE WATERS. SEAS AT SABSOON TWR WERE 5 FT
EARLIER TDA BUT WERE LIKELY THE RESULT OF CONVECTION IN THE AREA.
UNFORTUNATELY DATA LOSS AT SITE EARLIER THIS MRNG HAS MADE SEA
DETERMINATION DIFFICULT THIS AFTN AND EVNG. WL LOWER THE SCEC STMNT
AND MAKE SEAS 4 FT. THANKS ILM FOR THE COORDINATION CALL.

.CHS...
GA...NONE.
SC...NONE.

SCW/ST

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 31, 8:25 PM EST, 3 hours 35 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON, SC
925 PM EDT SAT AUG 31 2002

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0745 PM    WAMBAW CORNER             SC   FLOOD
08/31/02   CHARLESTON                     ROADS FLOODED
                                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT

SCW

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

9 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Allendale

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Allendale forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 32.988, -81.358 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Beaufort

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Beaufort forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL

Drought, Berkeley

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Berkeley forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 33.198, -79.951 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Charleston

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Charleston forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL

Drought, Hampton

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Hampton forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 32.776, -81.141 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Dorchester

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Dorchester forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 33.080, -80.406 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Jasper

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Jasper forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL

Drought, Northern Colleton

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Northern Colleton forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL
Coordinates: 32.843, -80.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Southern Colleton

When: September 1, 12:00 AM EST to September 30, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Southern Colleton forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL

What these are

Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in South Carolina in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in South Carolina, September 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5316798, 5316799, 5316800, 5316801, 5316802, 5316803, 5316804, 5316805, 5316806.