A line of thunderstorms had a few cells in the North Midlands and Pee Dee that produced some strong winds that took down trees.
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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 line of thunderstorms had a few cells in the North Midlands and Pee Dee that produced some strong winds that took down trees.
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 3, 9:26 PM EST, 12 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 1026 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 .SYNOPSIS... A FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION LATE TONIGHT. COOLER AND DRIER AIR WILL SETTLE INTO THE REGION AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS IN WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY. FAIR WEATHER IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK WITH MODERATING TEMPERATURES. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING/... COLD FRONT IN THE NORTHWEST PART OF THE FORECAST AREA WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE EASTWARD, A LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS HAS DEVELOP LED AHEAD OF THE FRONT. TRIED TO ALIGN HIGHEST POPS... CATEGORICAL POPS WITH LINE OF ACTIVITY. THERE IS ALSO SOME SHOWER ACTIVITY WITH A FEW THUNDERSTORMS BEHIND THE FRONT. WILL INCLUDE CHANCE TO LIKELY POPS JUST BEHIND FRONT TAPERING OFF TO SLIGHT CHANCE CLOSER TO DAYBREAK WEDNESDAY. OTHERWISE...TEMPERATURES AND WINDS STILL LOOK OK. ESTF OUT SHORTLY. && .SHORT TERM /6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH 6 PM WEDNESDAY/... RELIED HEAVILY ON 12Z SPC WRF MODEL RUN FOR OVERNIGHT POPS. IT APPEARS A BAND OF SHOWERS AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE FA FROM WEST TO EAST BEGINNING LATE TODAY THROUGH ABOUT MIDNIGHT OR SO. THEN...A SECOND BATCH OF SHOWERS POSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT AND EARLY WEDNESDAY ASSOCIATED WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE SOUTHERN END OF THE UPPER TROUGH. IT STILL APPEARS THAT THE BEST UPPER LIFT AND LOW TO MID LEVEL JET SPEEDS WILL REMAIN TO OUR NORTH...AND SPC CONTINUES TO KEEP SLIGHT RISK AREA TO OUR NORTH. ALSO...THE FRONT APPEARS WILL REMAIN AHEAD OF THE APPROACHING UPPER VORT THIS EVENING AND EARLY TONIGHT. FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE CONSIDERABLE CIN/LOW LEVEL NEGATIVE AREA THAT WILL NEED TO BE OVERCOME FOR ANY STORMS TO BECOME SEVERE. SURFACE BASED INSTABILITIES WILL BE LIMITED...BUT ELEVATED INSTABILITIES CONSIDERABLE. IT APPEARS THAT THE SEVERE THREAT FOR OUR FA WILL BE LIMITED TO ANY ISOLATED STRONGER STORMS ALONG THE FRONT OR OTHER BOUNDARIES WHERE THERE IS ENOUGH LOW LEVEL LIFT TO GET PARCELS ELEVATED. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/... NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES MADE TO ONGOING FORECAST FOR THIS TIME PERIOD. COOLER AND DRIER AIR WILL BE COMING IN BEHIND THE FRONT. MODELS MAINTAIN WEAK UPPER TROUGH OVER THE EASTERN CONUS THROUGH LATE WEEK. SOME UPPER ENERGY WILL RIDE BY TO OUR NORTH FRIDAY ALONG WITH A WEAK SURFACE TROUGH. CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT THE ATMOSPHERE WILL REMAIN TOO DRY FOR POPS OVER OUR REGION. GFS/ECWMF HAVING CONSISTENCY ISSUES WITH THE NEXT SYSTEM LATE IN THE FORECAST PERIOD. FOR NOW...WILL KEEP FORECAST DRY DUE TO LIMITED CONFIDENCE. && .AVIATION /03Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... MAINLY VFR CONDITIONS AHEAD OF COLD FRONT. BUT THERE COULD BE SOME BRIEF IFR-MVFR CONDITIONS IN HEAVIER SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY A THUNDERSTORM OR TWO. COLD FRONT SHOULD MOVE THROUGH THE REGION FROM 06Z-08Z TIME FRAME AND THERE MAY BE A FEW SHOWERS BEHIND THE FRONT. AFTER 10Z WEDNESDAY MORNING...VFR WITH MAINLY CLEAR SKIES AND GOOD VSBYS. EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...BEYOND 18Z WEDNESDAY...NO SIGNIFICANT AVIATION ISSUES EXPECTED TO OCCUR THROUGH SUNDAY. && .CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SC...NONE. GA...NONE. && SYNOPSIS... NEAR TERM...07 SHORT TERM... LONG TERM... AVIATION...07
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 609 AM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 GAZ040-063>065-077-SCZ015-016-018-020>022-025>031-035>038-041-041015- LINCOLN-MCDUFFIE-COLUMBIA-RICHMOND-BURKE-LANCASTER-CHESTERFIELD- MCCORMICK-NEWBERRY-FAIRFIELD-KERSHAW-EDGEFIELD-SALUDA-LEXINGTON- RICHLAND-LEE-AIKEN-SUMTER-BARNWELL-ORANGEBURG-CALHOUN-CLARENDON- BAMBERG- 609 AM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL GEORGIA AND CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 847 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 SCZ020-040145- NEWBERRY- 847 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 ...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WAS AFFECTING NEWBERRY...GREENWOOD...AND LAURENS COUNTIES... AT 844 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF CROSS HILL MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL...AND WINDS 40 TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. REPORT LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS OR FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1...8 7 7...6 3 3...6 7 7 2.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 943 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 GAZ063>065-SCZ018-025-040245- COLUMBIA-EDGEFIELD-MCCORMICK-MCDUFFIE-RICHMOND- 943 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE AFFECTING COLUMBIA...EDGEFIELD... MCCORMICK...MCDUFFIE AND RICHMOND COUNTIES... AT 942 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 11 MILES SOUTHWEST OF EDGEFIELD TO GIBSON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL...AND WINDS 40 TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. REPORT LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS OR FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1...8 7 7...6 3 3...6 7 7 2.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 953 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 SCZ020-021-026-040245- FAIRFIELD-NEWBERRY-SALUDA- 953 PM EDT TUE MAY 3 2011 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE AFFECTING FAIRFIELD...NEWBERRY...AND SALUDA COUNTIES... AT 952 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF NEWBERRY TO 10 MILES NORTHEAST OF SALUDA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL...AND WINDS 40 TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. REPORT LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS OR FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1...8 7 7...6 3 3...6 7 7 2.
The Columbia radar (KCAE), 60 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:38 UTC.
3 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
DOT reported trees down in northwest Fairfield county on several county roads.
DOT reported several trees down in the Jenkinsville area.
DOT reported several trees down on Riverside road just off Hwy 9 west of Lancaster.
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: 288380, 288381, 288383.