The combination of a strong shortwave approaching from the west and nice dewpoint boundary over the Midlands produced scattered thunderstorms. A few of these storms became severe producing damaging winds and small hail.
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 CAE wrote it up.
The combination of a strong shortwave approaching from the west and nice dewpoint boundary over the Midlands produced scattered thunderstorms. A few of these storms became severe producing damaging winds and small hail.
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 Aug 29, 2:05 PM EST, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 305 PM EDT MON AUG 29 2011 .SYNOPSIS... A WEAK SURFACE TROUGH...AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE...AND AN INCREASE IN ATMOSPHERIC MOISTURE WILL BRING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. FAIR WEATHER IS EXPECTED TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY AS WEAK HIGH PRESSURE AND DRIER AIR BUILDS IN. UPPER LEVEL ENERGY AND SOME INCREASE IN MOISTURE MAY PROVIDE ANOTHER CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LATE WEEK. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... SURFACE TROUGH REMAINS ACROSS EASTERN PORTIONS OF SC THIS AFTERNOON. UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE SHOWING UP ON WATER VAPOR CURRENTLY MOVING INTO THE UPSTATE. MSAS/LAPS DATA SHOWING MODERATE INSTABILITY ACROSS THE COASTAL PLAIN. WITH THE SHORTWAVE MOVING THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON...EXPECT TO HAVE ISOLATED SHOWERS AND STORMS DEVELOP. WILL CONTINUE WITH THE SLIGHT CHANCE POPS THROUGH THE LATE EVENING HOURS. AFTERNOON TEMPS GENERALLY IN THE MID 90S...THEN FALLING OVERNIGHT TO AROUND 70. THE AREA WILL BE UNDER WEAK SURFACE WEDGE FLOW...WITH WEAK SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT...WHICH COULD AID IN THE FORMATION OF SCATTERED TO POSSIBLY BROKEN CLOUDS OVERNIGHT. && .SHORT TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... VERY LITTLE CHANGE IN THINKING FOR THE SHORT TERM PERIOD. FLAT UPPER LEVEL RIDGING WILL TAKE PLACE OVER THE REGION INTO WEDNESDAY...BUT HEIGHTS BEING TO FALL A BIT WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY. THE AIRMASS REMAINS RATHER DRY OVER THE CAROLINAS. SUBSIDENCE ASSOCIATED WITH THE SURFACE AND UPPER RIDGE WILL LIMIT CONVECTION AND WILL CONTINUE WITH A DRY FORECAST THROUGH WEDNESDAY...BUT AS HEIGHTS BEGIN TO FALL BY THURSDAY A SLIGHT CHANCE WILL BE INTRODUCED. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN NEAR NORMAL WITH HIGHS AROUND 90. OVERNIGHT LOWS ARE EXPECTED TO BE IN THE UPPER 60S TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... LITTLE CHANGE MADE TO THE EXTENDED PERIODS. MEDIUM RANGE MODELS ARE IN REASONABLE AGREEMENT WITH THE PATTERN DURING THIS PERIOD...FAVORING A BUILDING UPPER RIDGE OVER THE OHIO VALLEY INTO THE SOUTHEAST WITH TROUGHING OVER THE UPPER MIDWEST AND OFF THE ATLANTIC COAST. BY SUNDAY/SUNDAY NIGHT THEN INTO MONDAY...A DEEP UPPER LOW DIVES INTO THE GREAT LAKES REGION SUNDAY WHICH WILL PUSH A FRONT AND INCREASED MOISTURE INTO THE AREA THROUGH MONDAY...INCREASING CHANCES OF RAIN. TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD WILL BE NEAR NORMAL FOR OVERNIGHT LOWS...BUT ABOVE NORMAL FOR AFTERNOON HIGHS. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL GENERALLY BE IN THE 90S THROUGH MUCH OF THE PERIOD. && .AVIATION /19Z MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... MAINLY VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THE NEXT 24 HOURS. DRIER AIR GETS MODIFIED AS A SEA BREEZE PUSHES INLAND 21Z-03Z. WILL INCLUDE SHOWERS IN THE VICINITY REMARK 22Z-05Z TONIGHT. AFTER 00Z NAM SORT OF LOOKS WEDGY WITH NORTHEAST LOW LEVEL WINDS AND MOISTURE CONVERGENCE OVER THE AREA. SO DECIDED SCATTERED CLOUDS NEAR 4.5 KFT WOULD BE A GOOD FORECAST FOR THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. CAN NOT RULE OUT THE CLOUD DECK BECOMING BROKEN OVERNIGHT. EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS TO AVIATION EXPECTED THROUGH THURSDAY. && .CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SC...NONE. GA...NONE. && SYNOPSIS... NEAR TERM... SHORT TERM... LONG TERM...77 AVIATION...
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 1201 PM EDT MON AUG 29 2011 GAZ040-063>065-077-SCZ015-016-018-020>022-025>031-035>038-041-301615- LINCOLN-MCDUFFIE-COLUMBIA-RICHMOND-BURKE-LANCASTER-CHESTERFIELD- MCCORMICK-NEWBERRY-FAIRFIELD-KERSHAW-EDGEFIELD-SALUDA-LEXINGTON- RICHLAND-LEE-AIKEN-SUMTER-BARNWELL-ORANGEBURG-CALHOUN-CLARENDON- BAMBERG- 1201 PM EDT MON AUG 29 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL GEORGIA AND CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MAY DEVELOP DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. SOME STORMS COULD BE STRONG TO SEVERE...WITH THE MAIN THREATS BEING DAMAGING WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. THE BEST CHANCES APPEAR TO BE ACROSS THE EASTERN REGIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
The Columbia radar (KCAE), 38 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:34 UTC.
9 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Public reported large limbs down and lots of limb debris in the roadway on Copperhead Road near Calhoun Road.
Sheriff Department reported trees and powerlines down on Copperhead Road near Old Bellville Road.
Highway Patrol reported trees down in the area of Highway 178 and also Chavis Road approximately 2 miles north of the town of North.
Highway Patrol reported power lines down at the intersection of Cedarcrest Road and Two Notch Road.
Highway Patrol reported trees down in the Arrowwood Road and Bush River Road area.
Sheriff Dispatch reported tree down near the town of North.
Highway Patrol reported a tree down at the intersection of Hwy 6 and Farming Creek Road.
Sheriff Dispatch reported a couple large limbs down and some trees down in Camden.
Columbia City Police reported flooding in the 5 Points Area and the intersection of Whaley Street and Main Street along Rocky Branch Creek. The gauge along Rocky Branch at Whaley and Main Streets crested at 8.21 feet.
Highway Department reported trees down along State Park Road near Aiken State Natural Area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in South Carolina in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in South Carolina, August 2011
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: 328329, 328336, 328321, 328344, 328364, 328348, 328357, 328362, 328613, 328311.