COLUMBIA, S.C. — The day after Halloween in 2014, Mother Nature tricked forecasters, but brought a rare treat to parts of the palmetto state.
Halloween 2014 was typical across the Midlands. It was a seasonably mild Friday, but later in the evening, showers and storms cut some trick-or-treating short and interfered with a few football games.
The forecast Friday night included some snow and or sleet mixing in the rain early Saturday morning, but meteorologically everything came together to produce a brief, memorable snow event for portions of the palmetto state.
The National Weather Service's Cooperative Observer site in Pelion recorded 3 inches of snow, the earliest and heaviest measurable snowfall ever recorded in South Carolina history.
There were some unofficial reports of higher amounts in parts of Lexington County.
November 1, 2014 Snowfall Totals:
Gilbert 4.5
Red Bank 4.5
Pelion 3.0
Clinton 2.8
Saluda 2.0
Lexington 1.5
Blythewood Trace
The snowfall did cause I-20 near Gilbert to briefly close, and there were some power outages. The impacts of this historic snow were relatively small, but for those who witnessed it, they will likely never forget the November 1, 2014 snow event.
Columbia is in somewhat of a snow drought. The airport has not had measurable snowfall since January 2017. It has not had an inch or more of snow since February 2014.
It is too early to know if the Midlands will get any snow this winter, but with a La Niña pattern starting to develop, the odds of snow may be a little lower than normal.
Typically, a La Niña winter would mean we would expect warmer-than-normal temperatures and less rainfall than normal.
La Niña conditions are forecast to last through the winter.