Will SC have any more snow the rest of this winter? Here’s the latest forecast
Much of South Carolina has been blanketed with snow not once, but twice in the span of a couple of weeks.
Reports of snow accumulation abounded across the state on Wednesday — from less than an inch in the Upstate to extremely rare accounts of up to 5 inches in parts of the Grand Strand region.
Some roads remained icy and treacherous in the Lowcountry, while schools and local government remained closed in Myrtle Beach because of the record snowfall there as of Thursday morning.
But as some South Carolinians continue to dig themselves out of the snow, are there chances for a third snowfall event in the Palmetto State this winter? The winter season technically lasts through March 20, after all.
Here’s what to know.
SC snow chances
Steve Lavoie, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Columbia, said while snow has fallen before in February, it’s extremely unlikely.
“Typically our coldest time of the year is January and it warms up in February,” Lavoie said. “The probability goes down in February.”
Instead, late January is usually when South Carolina gets snow — which lines up with the most recent winter events.
“I have snow records for Columbia going back to 1949 … the most common time for us to see snow is actually this time of year … the last 10 days of January,” Lavoie said.
Lavoie added that the previous two years were a drought for snow. However, before 2025, the last time it snowed was in 2022 and that was also in January.
Still, February snowfalls have happened in South Carolina, including one extremely notable one.
“That includes the biggest snowstorm on record in 1973,” Lavoie said. “We picked up 3.7 inches on Feb. 9 and 12 inches on Feb. 10.”
Records show the last time the Columbia area got snow in February was just over a decade ago in 2014, when the region received 2.1 inches on Feb. 12.
NWS weather forecast
The NWS Climate Prediction Center currently forecasts a 40% to 50% chance of temperatures reaching above normal during February and March.
It also predicts a 33% to 40% chance of precipitation levels leaning below normal in February and March for most of the state — and an even higher 40% to 50% chance for the coastal areas.
Farmer’s Almanac forecast
The Farmer’s Almanac long-term forecast shows no signs of snow for South Carolina in February.
The forecast does call for another blast of very cold air for the state and the rest of the South during the first week of February. From there, expect a few rain showers during the middle of the month, followed by more stormy weather through President’s Day weekend.
How Farmer’s Almanac predicts weather
Founded in 1818, the Farmers’ Almanac uses a secret formula that includes components such as “sunspot activity, tidal action, the position of the planets,” to predict long-range weather forecasts. The forecasts are typically made two years in advance. Fans of the Farmers’ Almanac have, over the years, calculated that the predictions are accurate 80-85% of the time.
This story was originally published January 24, 2025 at 5:30 AM.
