A combination of strong onshore flow and a strong jet extending from south southwest to the north northeast into the CSRA/Midlands produced high winds that took down trees and powerlines, damaged boats and docks on lakes, and did property damage. Post analysis showed a gravity wave was probably the result of the meteorological conditions that sustained the high winds for several hours.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS CAE wrote it up.
A combination of strong onshore flow and a strong jet extending from south southwest to the north northeast into the CSRA/Midlands produced high winds that took down trees and powerlines, damaged boats and docks on lakes, and did property damage. Post analysis showed a gravity wave was probably the result of the meteorological conditions that sustained the high winds for several hours.
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 Columbia, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 24, 1:33 PM EST, 1 hour 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 233 PM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 .SYNOPSIS... AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE FROM THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE NORTHEAST ACROSS COASTAL SOUTH CAROLINA OVERNIGHT. THE LOW WILL MOVE NORTHEAST OF OUR REGION SATURDAY...WITH GRADUAL CLEARING EXPECTED. A DRY COLD FRONT WILL COME THROUGH MONDAY. BEHIND THE FRONT...HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD INTO OUR REGION PROVIDING FAIR WEATHER AND COOLER TEMPERATURES FOR NEXT WEEK. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... HIGH PRESSURE IS CURRENTLY CENTERED ALONG THE NEW ENGLAND COAST...WITH RIDGE AXIS EXTENDING SW...WITH WEDGE IN PLACE OVER OUR REGION. RADAR CURRENTLY INDICATES WIDESPREAD RAIN OVER THE FORECAST AREA. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY INDICATES MID AND UPPER LEVEL DRY AIR MOVING OVER WESTERN GA. LOW PRESSURE IS CURRENTLY OVER THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE. THE LOW WILL TRACK TO THE NE ACROSS SE GA AND COASTAL SC OVERNIGHT. ISENTROPIC LIFT AHEAD OF THE LOW WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE CATEGORICAL RAIN CHANCES THROUGH ABOUT MIDNIGHT. RAIN AMOUNTS SHOULD LIGHTEN UP LATE TONIGHT AS BEST ISENTROPIC LIFT SHIFTS TO OUR EAST...AND MID TO UPPER LEVEL DRY AIR MOVES EAST INTO THE REGION. && .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT/... MODELS INDICATE PRECIPITATION MOVING EAST OUT OF OUR FA SATURDAY MORNING. MODELS INDICATE LINGERING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE. SO...CLOUDINESS MAY BE SLOW TO CLEAR OUT FROM WEST TO EAST SATURDAY. SUNDAY LOOKS REALLY NICE WITH HIGH PRESSURE AND SEASONAL TEMPS. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... A DRY COLD FRONT WILL COME THROUGH MONDAY. BEHIND THE FRONT...A COOL DRY CANADIAN AIR MASS WILL FILTER INTO THE REGION. THIS WILL BRING A CHANCE OF FROST AND POSSIBLY SOME FREEZING CONDITIONS TO THE AREA TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHTS. && .AVIATION /18Z FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... EXPECT IFR CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MOST OF THE TAF PERIOD. DEEP MOISTURE AND ISENTROPIC LIFT WILL CONTINUE DURING THE REST OF TODAY. THE NAM AND GFS PLUS SATELLITE TRENDS INDICATE MID-LEVEL DRYING WILL OCCUR THIS EVENING. THE RAIN SHOULD DIMINISH BUT EXPECT HIGH LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE WILL REMAIN IN A LINGERING STABLE AND MOIST WEDGE PATTERN WITH IFR CONDITIONS. THE MET AND MAV MOS PLUS THE SREF GUIDANCE MAINTAIN IFR CONDITIONS THROUGH THE NIGHT. COMPARED TO THE NAM...THE GFS IS FASTER DEVELOPING ISENTROPIC DOWNGLIDE SATURDAY. THE SREF GUIDANCE AGREES MORE WITH THE GFS. USED THE MAV MOS AND FORECASTED CONDITIONS BECOMING VFR AROUND 15Z BUT CONFIDENCE IS LOW WITH THIS IMPROVING TREND BECAUSE OF THE MODEL DISAGREEMENT. IF THE NAM IS CORRECT THEN THE IMPROVEMENT TO VFR MAY BE DELAYED UNTIL EARLY IN THE AFTERNOON. NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS EXPECTED DURING THE REST OF THE EXTENDED PERIOD. && .CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SC...NONE. GA...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 450 AM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 GAZ040-063>065-077-SCZ015-016-018-020>022-025>031-035>038-041-250850- AIKEN-BAMBERG-BARNWELL-BURKE-CALHOUN-CHESTERFIELD-CLARENDON-COLUMBIA- EDGEFIELD-FAIRFIELD-KERSHAW-LANCASTER-LEE-LEXINGTON-LINCOLN-MCCORMICK- MCDUFFIE-NEWBERRY-ORANGEBURG-RICHLAND-RICHMOND-SALUDA-SUMTER- 450 AM EDT FRI OCT 24 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE MIDLANDS OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND THE CENTRAL SAVANNAH RIVER AREA OF GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High winds took down trees and powerlines throughout the county.
TV 10 reported trees and powerlines down throughout the county.
DOT reported several trees and a few powerlines down throughout the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Georgia in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, October 2008
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: 134304, 134305, 134306.