Wind advisories issued, thousands without power as Zeta bears down on Midlands

The remnants of Hurricane Zeta are moving into South Carolina Thursday, and there is the threat of severe weather in the Columbia area.

Isolated tornadoes, powerful winds, and severe thunderstorms are all possible, according to the National Weather Service office in Columbia.

Lake wind advisories have been issued across the Midlands through the evening, the National Weather Service said in a morning briefing. Additionally, until 6 p.m. wind advisories are in effect in Kershaw, Fairfield, Newberry, Saluda, Chesterfield, Lancaster, Edgefield, Greenwood, and McCormick counties.

Any other alerts will be based on any tornadoes forming.

The greatest chance of tornadoes will be in the morning, beginning at 7 a.m., meteorologist Tina Morrison told The State on Wednesday.

Tornadoes could knock down trees and power lines, and damage mobile homes. Unsecured objects could be blown around, and tree limbs could be knocked down and could result in power outages.

As of 8:30 a.m., Dominion Energy reported 499 outages in the Columbia/Lexington area, and of the 55,973 power losses confirmed by the Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina more than 8,900 were in the Midlands.

Winds will increase during the morning and into the afternoon, with sustained speeds between 15-25 mph, and possible gusts moving as fast as 40 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

Morrison said a cold front will move through the region, which increases the chance of more damaging winds and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening.

A tropical storm watch was issued for parts of the Upstate, where projections show Zeta having a more direct impact.

There’s a 50% chance of precipitation in the Midlands forecast, and up to a half an inch of rainfall is possible in the Midlands, according to Morrison.

Flooding is not expected in the Columbia area on Thursday, Morrison said. Minor river flooding is possible on the Congaree River over the weekend depending on how much rain falls in the headwaters from Zeta, according to the National Weather Service.

Zeta is expected to continue its northeast track, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm should clear the Columbia area by Friday, Morrison said.

After Zeta moves through the Midlands, the forecast for the end of the week and weekend is dry and cool weather. No precipitation is expected as high temperatures in Columbia could reach the upper 60s Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

Zeta is the most recent storm to affect the Columbia area after roaring north through the Gulf Coast.

It follows fellow storms that were at one point powerful hurricanes including Delta in early October, Sally in September and Laura in late August. Tropical Storm Isaias also dumped significant rainfall as it rumbled through the region at the beginning of August.

This story was originally published October 28, 2020 at 11:44 AM.

Noah Feit

The State

803-771-8435

Noah Feit is a Real Time reporter with The State focused on breaking news, public safety and trending news. The award-winning journalist has worked for multiple newspapers since starting his career in 1999. Support my work with a digital subscription