An approaching cold front in combination with deep tropical moisture over the area and an anonymously deep upper level low passing by to the west of the region, result in numerous showers and thunderstorms across southern South Carolina.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 CHS wrote it up.
An approaching cold front in combination with deep tropical moisture over the area and an anonymously deep upper level low passing by to the west of the region, result in numerous showers and thunderstorms across southern South Carolina.
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 Sep 26, 3:00 PM EST, 13 hours 18 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 400 PM EDT SUN SEP 26 2010 .SYNOPSIS... LOW PRESSURE WILL DEVELOP ALONG A STATIONARY FRONT OVER AL AND GA TONIGHT AND WILL LIFT NORTH THROUGH MONDAY. A TRAILING COLD FRONT WILL PUSH INTO THE AREA FROM THE WEST MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...THEN WILL STALL ACROSS THE NEARBY ATLANTIC WATERS BY TUESDAY. THE REMNANTS OF THE FRONT WILL LINGER OFFSHORE WEDNESDAY INTO NEXT WEEKEND. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... LATE SUNDAY AFTERNOON...AN ANOMALOUS/DEEP CLOSED LOW CONTINUED TO DIG S/SE ACROSS THE MID MS RIVER VALLEY...WHILE AN ASSOCIATED SURFACE STATIONARY FRONT WAS POSITIONED INLAND FROM THE FORECAST AREA...ACROSS CENTRAL SC AND CENTRAL GA. THE CORE OF THE UPPER LOW IS PROGGED TO ADVANCE INTO THE MS/TN/AL VICINITY BY 12Z MON...PROMOTING SURFACE CYCLOGENESIS ACROSS THE INTERIOR SE TONIGHT. AHEAD OF THESE FEATURES...HEIGHT FALLS/STRENGTHENING DEEP LAYER FORCING/ASCENT WILL INTERACT WITH MOIST WARM SECTOR FEATURING A PLUME OF RICH MOISTURE/PWATS AT LEAST 2 INCHES...SUPPORTING CLUSTERS OF SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS WHICH WILL PRODUCE MEASURABLE RAINFALL AT MOST LOCATIONS. LIKELY/CATEGORICAL POPS ARE JUSTIFIED MOST AREAS EXCEPT PERHAPS FAR SE COUNTIES UNLESS PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE NORTHERN GULF OF MEXICO BLOSSOMS NE. HIGH PWATS AND THE POTENTIAL FOR REPEATING/TRAINING SHOWERS/ THUNDERSTORMS JUSTIFIES A MENTION OF HEAVY RAINFALL ALL AREAS TONIGHT. MEANWHILE...THROUGH EARLY EVENING...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS COULD BRIEFLY INTENSIFY TO PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS/HAIL...ESPECIALLY WHERE BOUNDARY INTERACTIONS OCCUR. ALSO OF INTEREST...A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS NEAR THE SURFACE COLD FRONT ACROSS CENTRAL GA LATE SUNDAY AFTERNOON COULD HOLD TOGETHER TO PRODUCE A LOCAL DAMAGING WIND THREAT ESPECIALLY ACROSS INLAND COUNTIES THIS EVENING. OVERNIGHT...INTENSIFYING LOW/MID LEVEL WIND FIELDS/BULK SHEAR... STRENGTHENING DEEP LAYER FORCING/ASCENT AND LOW LEVEL INSTABILITY COULD SUPPORT A CONTINUING ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND THREAT...AND AN ISOLATED SUPERCELL/TORNADO CANNOT BE COMPLETELY RULED OUT IF A SURFACE LOW APPROACHES INLAND COUNTIES AND ENHANCES STORM RELATIVE HELICITY. && .SHORT TERM /MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... IMPRESSIVE DYNAMICS WILL IMPACT THE FORECAST AREA ON MONDAY...AS THE ROBUST UPPER LOW ACROSS MISSISSIPPI AND ALABAMA SHIFTS NORTHEAST THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. THE OVERALL SYNOPTIC PATTERN IS FAIRLY CONSISTENT BETWEEN THE MODELS...HOWEVER SLIGHT DIFFERENCES IN SPEED AND LOCATION OF THE STACKED LOW SYSTEM AND TRAILING COLD FRONT LEND SOME UNCERTAINTY TO FORECAST DETAILS. STRONG WIND FIELDS NEAR THE SURFACE AND ALOFT WILL MAINTAIN A SOLID TAP INTO DEEP GULF MOISTURE AND PLENTIFUL SHORTWAVE ACTIVITY DOWNSTREAM OF THE UPPER LOW SYSTEM. PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES INCREASE BETWEEN 2 AND 2.25 INCHES BY THE AFTERNOON...SUGGESTING HEAVY RAINFALL IS LIKELY AHEAD OF THE APPROACHING FRONTAL SYSTEM. THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL REMAINS IN QUESTION AT THIS POINT. CURRENTLY THE FORECAST AREA IS IN A SLIGHT RISK REGION FOR ORGANIZED SEVERE DEVELOPMENT ON MONDAY. A NEARLY 100 KT UPPER LEVEL JET WILL SHIFT EAST AND NORTHEAST AHEAD OF THE CLOSED LOW SYSTEM...PLACING THE FORECAST AREA NEAR THE FAVORABLE RIGHT REAR QUADRANT. ADDITIONALLY...A LOW LEVEL JET OF AROUND 30 KT WILL MOVE DIRECTLY OVER THE SOUTHEAST STATES WHILE BULK SHEAR VALUES INCREASE TO 40 TO 50 KT ACCORDINGLY DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. THESE CONDITIONS COULD SUPPORT THE ORGANIZATION OF THUNDERSTORMS...AS WELL AS THE POTENTIAL FOR THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS TO PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS OR EVEN AN ISOLATED TORNADO. DESPITE THE FAVORABLE DYNAMICS...INSTABILITY COULD BE IN QUESTION ON MONDAY. NUMEROUS TO WIDESPREAD SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ONGOING DURING THE MORNING HOURS...AND THICK CLOUD COVER COULD SUPPRESS TYPICAL DAYTIME WARMING AND DESTABILIZATION TRENDS. MODEL GUIDANCE STILL INDICATES HIGH TEMPERATURES IN THE MID 80S...WITH DEWPOINTS REMAINING IN THE LOWER 70S UNDER SOLID SOUTHWEST FLOW OFF THE GULF. YET MODIFIED MODEL SOUNDINGS USING THESE NUMBERS PRODUCE MARGINAL INSTABILITY PARAMETER VALUES...SUCH AS CAPE VALUES IN THE 1500 J/KG RANGE. AS A RESULT...IT COULD BE POSSIBLE THAT THIS EVENT BECOMES A HIGH SHEAR/LOW CAPE SCENARIO...AND PREFER NOT TO MAKE ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE ONGOING WORDING IN THE FORECAST AND HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK. THE GFS MODEL IS A FEW HOURS FASTER THAN THE NAM IN PUSHING THE COLD FRONT OFF THE COAST MONDAY NIGHT/TUESDAY MORNING...AS LOW PRESSURE AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT TRACK NORTH OF THE AREA. USING A BLEND OF THE MODEL SOLUTIONS...HAVE TRENDED POPS DOWNWARD FROM WEST TO EAST AFTER MIDNIGHT EARLY TUESDAY MORNING...MAINTAINING LIKELY THUNDERSTORM CHANCES FOR THE CHARLESTON TRI COUNTY AREA AND THE COASTLINE UNTIL AROUND DAYBREAK TUESDAY. RAIN CHANCES THEN DROP OFF CONSIDERABLY INLAND ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. WILL NEED TO CONTINUE MENTION OF AT LEAST A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR RAIN ACROSS COASTAL COUNTIES THROUGH WEDNESDAY...CONSIDERING THE FRONT WILL LIKELY LINGER JUST OFFSHORE AND POSSIBLY WAVER BACK ONTO LAND AS A TROPICAL LOW SHIFTS NORTH FROM THE CARIBBEAN. THERE IS MUCH UNCERTAINTY IN THE EARLY TO MID WEEK PERIOD DUE TO THIS DEVELOPMENT...AND DIFFERENCES IN MODEL SYNOPTIC FIELDS PRODUCE QUITE A VARIED SENSIBLE WEATHER IMPACT. WILL MAINTAIN A RATHER UNSETTLED FORECAST...WITH RAIN CHANCES FOR AT LEAST THE EASTERN HALF OF THE AREA LINGERING THROUGH THE SHORT TERM. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN IN THE LOW TO MID 80S TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT LOW TEMPERATURES TUESDAY NIGHT COULD BE QUITE COOL...FALLING JUST UNDER 60 DEGREES INLAND...AS A RESULT OF THE INFLUENCE OF A PERSISTENT UPPER TO THE WEST AND DEVELOPING NORTHEAST FLOW. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY/... STILL A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF UNCERTAINTY LATER THIS WEEK...MAINLY IN REGARDS TO THE POSSIBLE FORMATION OF ANY TROPICAL LOW IN THE NW CARIBBEAN OR SE GULF. A PERSISTENT MID AND UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL REMAIN IN THE EAST...ALLOWING FOR ENOUGH MOISTURE TO KEEP SLIGHT CHANCE TO CHANCE POPS IN THE FORECAST...HIGHEST NEAR THE COAST. THIS TROUGH WILL PLAY A BIG ROLE IN THE FUTURE EVOLUTION OF ANY TROPICAL SYSTEM...BUT ODDS AT PRESENT FAVOR ANY LOW REMAINING OUTSIDE THE FORECAST AREA THROUGH SATURDAY. TEMPS WILL STAY ABOVE NORMAL THURSDAY AND FRIDAY...BUT COULD TREND TOWARD NORMAL OR EVEN SLIGHTLY BELOW SEASONAL LEVELS SATURDAY. && .AVIATION /20Z SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... OUTSIDE ANY THUNDERSTORMS...VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL THROUGH 02Z TONIGHT. HOWEVER...BRIEF PERIODS OF MVFR OR LOWER CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR IN ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS. LATER TONIGHT AS THE LOW LEVEL JET STRENGTHENS AND BOUNDARY LAYER MOISTURE POOLS LOW LEVEL STRATUS SHOULD DEVELOP AT THE TERMINALS. CURRENTLY CARRYING MVFR CIGS IN THE TAFS...BUT WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IF IFR CIGS DEVELOP. THE LOW STRATUS WILL BEGIN TO BREAK IN THE MORNING HOURS AROUND 15Z. WITH SURFACE WINDS REMAINING BETWEEN 5 AND 10 KNOTS THROUGH THE NIGHT FOG DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE AN ISSUE. THE STRONGER SURFACE WINDS WILL ALSO NEGATE ANY THREAT OF LOW LEVEL WIND SHEAR EVEN WITH A 25 TO 30 KNOT LOW LEVEL JET DEVELOPING TONIGHT. EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...CHANCE FOR PERIODIC MVFR OR LOWER CONDITIONS MOST OF MON INTO MON NIGHT WITH HIGHER PROBABILITIES OF SHRA/TSRA IMPACTING THE TERMINALS. MOSTLY VFR CONDITIONS LOOK TO RETURN TUE THROUGH THU. && .MARINE... AS LOW PRESSURE DEVELOPS INLAND...S WINDS WILL INCREASE AND SEAS WILL BUILD ACROSS COASTAL WATERS TONIGHT. THE POTENTIAL FOR SCA WINDS/SEAS REMAINS LOW THROUGH TONIGHT...THUS CAPPED WINDS AT 15-20 KT ALL AREAS AND CAPPED SEAS AT 3-4 FT ACROSS NEARSHORE WATERS AND 4-5 FT BEYOND 20 NM. THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALTER LOCAL WINDS. HAVE RAISED A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR THE SOUTH CAROLINA WATERS NORTH OF EDISTO AND THE OFFSHORE GEORGIA WATERS BEGINNING MONDAY AFTERNOON...AS A 30 KT LOW LEVEL JET AND TIGHTENING PRESSURE GRADIENT IMPACT THE MARINE ZONES AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING FRONTAL SYSTEM. FREQUENT GUSTS TO 25 KT ARE POSSIBLE MONDAY AFTERNOON FOR THE AFOREMENTIONED ZONES IN THE ADVISORY...ALLOWING SEAS TO BUILD TO 6 FT THROUGH AT LEAST TUESDAY MORNING. THERE IS STILL A POTENTIAL FOR MARGINAL SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY CONDITIONS WITHIN THE REMAINING SOUTH CAROLINA MARINE ZONES...HOWEVER CONFIDENCE IS TOO LOW DUE TO MODEL DISCREPANCIES TO ISSUE ADDITIONAL ADVISORIES AT THIS TIME. THE FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL GRADUALLY PUSH OFFSHORE TUESDAY...LEAVING A LINGERING FRONT OVER THE WATERS THROUGH THE LATTER HALF OF THE WEEK. CONDITIONS WILL INITIALLY SETTLE DOWN TUE INTO WED...ALLOWING WINDS AND SEAS TO BECOME RATHER BENIGN. HOWEVER...STARTING THURSDAY THERE IS CONSIDERABLE UNCERTAINTY IN THE FORECAST. SOME FORECAST MODELS INDICATE THE POTENTIAL FOR A TROPICAL SYSTEM TO COME OUT OF THE SOUTH-CENTRAL CARIBBEAN AND MOVE NORTHEAST TOWARD FLORIDA AND THE SOUTHEAST COAST ALONG THE LINGERING FRONT. SINCE THERE IS DECENT MODEL AGREEMENT IN THIS IDEA...HAVE REFLECTED THIS THINKING IN THE MARINE FORECAST BY RAISING WINDS AND SEAS FOR THU AND FRI. THIS FORECAST HAS POTENTIAL TO CHANGE SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE COMING DAYS SO MARINERS ARE URGED TO STAY TUNED TO THE LATEST MARINE FORECASTS. && .CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GA...NONE. SC...NONE. MARINE...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 503 PM EDT SUN SEP 26 2010 GAZ087-088-099>101-114>119-137>141-SCZ040-042>045-047>052-271000- JENKINS-SCREVEN-CANDLER-BULLOCH-EFFINGHAM-TATTNALL-EVANS- INLAND BRYAN-COASTAL BRYAN-INLAND CHATHAM-COASTAL CHATHAM-LONG- INLAND LIBERTY-COASTAL LIBERTY-INLAND MCINTOSH-COASTAL MCINTOSH- ALLENDALE-HAMPTON-INLAND COLLETON-DORCHESTER-INLAND BERKELEY- INLAND JASPER-BEAUFORT-COASTAL COLLETON-CHARLESTON-COASTAL JASPER- TIDAL BERKELEY- 503 PM EDT SUN SEP 26 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...NUMEROUS TO WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT. A FEW OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE...CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS AND PERHAPS AN ISOLATED TORNADO. HEAVY RAIN...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS COULD PRODUCE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL AND LOCALIZED FLOODING TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...AHEAD OF A STRONG COLD FRONT MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...A FEW THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE WITH DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND EVEN AN ISOLATED TORNADO...ESPECIALLY BETWEEN 2 PM AND 11 PM EDT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED TONIGHT...THEN AGAIN MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. AMZ330-350-352-354-374-271000- CHARLESTON HARBOR- WATERS FROM SOUTH SANTEE RIVER TO EDISTO BEACH SC OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM EDISTO BEACH SC TO SAVANNAH GA OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM SAVANNAH GA TO ALTAMAHA SOUND GA OUT 20 NM...INCLUDING GRAYS REEF NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY- WATERS FROM SAVANNAH GA TO ALTAMAHA SOUND GA EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 503 PM EDT SUN SEP 26 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR ATLANTIC COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT. A FEW OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE...CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS AND PERHAPS AN ISOLATED WATERSPOUT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...AHEAD OF A STRONG COLD FRONT MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...A FEW THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE WITH STRONG WINDS AND LARGE HAIL...ESPECIALLY BETWEEN 2 PM AND 11 PM EDT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.
The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 65 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 09:18 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Law Enforcement reported a tree down at the intersection of Mauss Hill Road and Moon Dam Road. A second tree was reported down at the intersection of State Highways 162 and 174.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in South Carolina in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in South Carolina, September 2010
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 254804.