Despite January’s frigid start, 2018 landed within the top-five warmest years on record at the airport, tying 1998 with an average temperature of 67.9°. This is the fourth consecutive year that average temperatures have landed within the top five warmest on record. 1990 still reigns supreme, though, as the warmest recorded year with an average temperature of 69.3°.
Severe weather warning counts since 1986 for the NWS Charleston, SC county warning and forecast area. Storm-based warnings for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms began in October 2007, replacing warnings issued for whole counties. Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet
2018 was highly irregular in one fairly beneficial way: There was an overall lack of severe weather (at least as far as tornadoes, straight-line damaging winds, and hail go) during the year.
Let’s be honest: If it snows like this in Charleston, it’ll top the year’s weather events.
To say 2018 was an interesting (and at times baffling) year in weather in Charleston is really selling it short. It just about had it all: Snow, tropical threats, frigid cold, sweltering heat, rainfall, and (of course!) flooding.
Over the next few days, I’ll be looking back at 2018’s key weather events and trends. Today, we start with the most epic weather event of 2018: The January 3rd winter storm.
