Scattered to numerous strong to severe, discrete thunderstorm cells developed across the Piedmont during the afternoon ahead of a slow-moving, nearly stationary backdoor cold front. The storms were prolific hail producers, with some producing larger than baseball size 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 GSP wrote it up.
Scattered to numerous strong to severe, discrete thunderstorm cells developed across the Piedmont during the afternoon ahead of a slow-moving, nearly stationary backdoor cold front. The storms were prolific hail producers, with some producing larger than baseball size hail. New cells often developed upstream of mature cells, then moved over the same areas, such that some locations saw two or more rounds of large hail. This was especially true across portions of Spartanburg, Cherokee, Union, and York Counties.
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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 23, 1:09 PM EST, 34 minutes earlier.
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</html>HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 411 AM EDT FRI MAY 23 2014 GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033-035>037-048>053-056>059-062>065- 068>072-082-501>510-SCZ001>014-019-240815- RABUN-HABERSHAM-STEPHENS-FRANKLIN-HART-ELBERT-AVERY-ALEXANDER- IREDELL-DAVIE-MADISON-YANCEY-MITCHELL-SWAIN-HAYWOOD-BUNCOMBE-CATAWBA- ROWAN-GRAHAM-NORTHERN JACKSON-MACON-SOUTHERN JACKSON-TRANSYLVANIA- HENDERSON-CLEVELAND-LINCOLN-GASTON-MECKLENBURG-CABARRUS-UNION NC- CALDWELL MOUNTAINS-GREATER CALDWELL-BURKE MOUNTAINS-GREATER BURKE- MCDOWELL MOUNTAINS-EASTERN MCDOWELL-RUTHERFORD MOUNTAINS- GREATER RUTHERFORD-POLK MOUNTAINS-EASTERN POLK-OCONEE MOUNTAINS- PICKENS MOUNTAINS-GREENVILLE MOUNTAINS-GREATER OCONEE- GREATER PICKENS-GREATER GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG-CHEROKEE-YORK- ANDERSON-ABBEVILLE-LAURENS-UNION SC-CHESTER-GREENWOOD- 411 AM EDT FRI MAY 23 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST GEORGIA...PIEDMONT NORTH CAROLINA...WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA AND UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. A COLD FRONT MOVING SLOWLY SOUTHWARD THROUGH THE REGION TODAY WILL GENERATE ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. ALTHOUGH THE COVERAGE OF THE THUNDERSTORMS IS NOT EXPECTED TO BE VERY WIDESPREAD...JUST ABOUT ANY THUNDERSTORM THAT DEVELOPS LATE TODAY WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE BRIEF BUT DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND HAIL THE SIZE OF QUARTERS. IN ADDITION...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING WILL ACCOMPANY ANY THUNDERSTORM. THE GREATEST COVERAGE OF THUNDERSTORMS LATE TODAY WILL BE ALONG AND SOUTHEAST OF INTERSTATE 85...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE CHARLOTTE METRO AREA AND THE EASTERN UPSTATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. ..SATURDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ..SUNDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ..MONDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ..TUESDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ..WEDNESDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ..THURSDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO RELAY ANY REPORTS OF LARGE HAIL OR DAMAGING WINDS TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. HG
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</html>The Greer radar (KGSP), 39 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:42 UTC.
17 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
National Severe Storms Lab relayed public report of half dollar size hail 3 WNW. Spotters and the public reported up to half dollar size hail across the city of Easley.
Public reported up to golf ball size hail off Country Club Rd.
Spotters and the public reported up to golf ball size hail in the Duncan/Reidville/ Moore area.
National Severe Storms Lab relayed public report of 2.25 inch diameter hail near Reidville.
Public provided photo evidence of tennis ball size hail in the Moore area.
FD reported pea to quarter size hail west of Jonesville.
Public reported up to golf ball size hail from the west side of Spartanburg to the area around Spartanburg Regional Hospital.
Public reported up to golf ball size hail north of the Leeds community.
Ham radio operator reported dime to quarter size hail at the intersection of Highway 80 and Wade Hampton Blvd.
Spotter reported nickel size hail.
National Severe Storms Lab relayed multiple public reports, corroborated by spotters and law enforcement, of up to golf ball size hail with a second severe thunderstorm that tracked from the city of York, across the north side of Rock Hill to near Tega Kay and Ft Mill.
County comms reported hail of at least quarter size at Croft State Park.
National Severe Storms Lab relayed multiple public reports of up to golf ball size hail on the north side of Rock Hill.
National Severe Storms Lab relayed public report of 2-inch diameter hail near Fort Mill.
Spotter reported golf ball size hail with a third York County severe thunderstorm. This one tracked across the southern part of the county.
Spotters reported up to golf ball size hail that broke car windshields in the Union area.
County comms reported that the second severe thunderstorm produced larger than baseball size hail on the west side of the city. Multiple car windshields were reportedly broken out and skylights were broken at a department store.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in South Carolina in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in South Carolina, May 2014
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: 517262, 517263, 517264, 517265, 517266, 517267, 517269, 517270, 517271, 517272, 517288, 517289, 517291, 517285, 517287, 517286, 517290.