Scattered severe thunderstorms produced some large hail and wind damage.
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.
Scattered severe thunderstorms produced some large hail and wind damage.
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 May 26, 6:45 PM EST, 56 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 745 PM EDT THU MAY 26 2011 .SYNOPSIS... THE REMNANTS OF A COLD FRONT PLUS SOUTHERLY FLOW WILL RESULT IN A MOISTURE INCREASE TONIGHT. THIS MOISTURE WILL REMAIN IN THE AREA FRIDAY. DRYING WILL OCCUR FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY AS HIGH PRESSURE BECOMES MORE DOMINATE. && .NEAR TERM /TONIGHT/... MAIN LINE OF SHOWERS/STORMS MOVING ACROSS EASTERN GA THIS EVENING. MODELS BRINGING PRECIP INTO WESTERN COUNTIES SHORTLY...THEN INTO CENTRAL AREAS BEFORE WEAKENING. HAVE ADJUSTED POPS ACCORDINGLY...WITH INCREASING POPS WEST THEN CENTRAL THE NEXT FEW HOURS. DRY CONDITIONS EAST. MODERATE INSTABILITY WITH AN INVERTED V-TYPE SOUNDING SUPPORTS POSSIBLE DAMAGING WIND AND HAIL WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS. && .SHORT TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH THE REMNANTS OF THE COLD FRONT AND A LINGERING H5 SHORTWAVE TROUGH SHOULD HELP SUPPORT SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FRIDAY. LEANED TOWARD THE HIGHER MET MOS AND SREF GUIDANCE POPS BECAUSE OF THIS SUPPORT. CLOUDINESS SHOULD HELP LIMIT INSTABILITY FRIDAY SO EXPECT A DIMINISHED THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. THE THUNDERSTORM CHANCE SHOULD DIMINISH FRIDAY NIGHT AS THE UPPER- LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH SHIFTS EASTWARD AND MOISTURE BECOMES SHALLOW. BUILDING H5 HEIGHTS SHOULD LIMIT THUNDERSTORMS SATURDAY. THE COOLER GUIDANCE TEMPERATURES APPEARS BETTER FRIDAY BECAUSE OF EXPECTED CLOUDINESS. OTHERWISE...USED THE CONSENSUS TEMPERATURES. && .LONG TERM /SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/... THE GFS AND ECMWF SHOW UPPER-LEVEL RIDGING DOMINATING DURING THE EXTENDED PERIOD. EXPECT ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES WITH JUST A SMALL CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY LATE IN THE PERIOD WHEN THE UPPER RIDGE APPEARS TO SHIFT A LITTLE FARTHER WESTWARD. && .AVIATION /00Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... LINE OF CONVECTION MOVING THROUGH EASTERN GEORGIA WILL TRY TO PUSH EASTWARD THIS EVENING BUT SHOULD WEAKEN AS IT PUSHES INTO DRIER AIR. LOW CONFIDENCE IN CONVECTION IMPACTING TERMINALS...ESPECIALLY OGB...BUT SOME SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE DURING THE 02Z-07Z FROM WEST TO EAST. IF SHOWERS IMPACT TERMINALS THEN MVFR CIGS/VSBY POSSIBLE. GUSTY SOUTHERLY WINDS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH ABOUT 03Z OR SO WHEN GUSTS MAY SUBSIDE BUT WINDS WILL STAY UP OVERNIGHT. LOTS OF DEBRIS CLOUD WILL OVERSPREAD THE AREA OVERNIGHT BUT CIGS SHOULD REMAIN VFR. SOME STRATOCUMULUS MAY DEVELOP AROUND DAWN FRIDAY DURING THE 09Z-13Z TIME FRAME BUT CONFIDENCE IS NOT HIGH ENOUGH TO INCLUDE AS PREVAILING AT THIS TIME. WINDS WILL REMAIN SOUTHERLY AFTER 12Z BUT WILL INCREASE IN SPEEDS TO AROUND 10-13 KNOTS AFTER 15Z. THERE IS A BETTER CHANCE FOR CONVECTION ON FRIDAY BUT LOCATION AND TIMING IS UNPREDICTABLE AND WILL ONLY INCLUDE CB EXTENSION AT THIS TIME. EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE FRIDAY NIGHT INTO SATURDAY MORNING WITH PERIODS OF MVFR CONDITIONS. && .CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SC...NONE. GA...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 745 AM EDT THU MAY 26 2011 GAZ040-063>065-077-SCZ015-016-018-020>022-025>031-035>038-041-271145- LINCOLN-MCDUFFIE-COLUMBIA-RICHMOND-BURKE-LANCASTER-CHESTERFIELD- MCCORMICK-NEWBERRY-FAIRFIELD-KERSHAW-EDGEFIELD-SALUDA-LEXINGTON- RICHLAND-LEE-AIKEN-SUMTER-BARNWELL-ORANGEBURG-CALHOUN-CLARENDON- BAMBERG- 745 AM EDT THU MAY 26 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL GEORGIA AND CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. WIDELY SCATTERED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A FEW OF THE STORMS COULD POSSIBLY CONTAIN DAMAGING WIND AND HAIL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
The Greer radar (KGSP), 101 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:40 UTC.
6 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
DOT reported trees down in the Mt. Carmel area.
EM reported trees down on Morrah Bridge road.
Sheriff reported nickel to quarter size hail on the south side of Aiken.
Sheriff reported trees down along Dusty road off of HWY 219 blocking the roadway.
Savannah River Site EOC reported a large tree down across the intersection of Echo and Foxtrot roads.
DOT reported a large tree down near Toolebeck road and Deloach Way.
DOT reported a large tree down across New Holland road.
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, May 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: 295070, 295067, 295058, 295066, 295064, 295061, 295060.