Drought expands across S.C. amid dry spring conditions

The entire state of South Carolina has entered drought conditions amid below-average rainfall this season.

Last week, the S.C. Drought Response Committee met and evaluated drought indicators to determine drought severity in each of the state's counties. Below-normal rainfall, continued concern for wildfires and declining streamflow levels were the key factors guiding their decisions.

Five coastal counties are now in moderate drought, the second level of drought severity based on South Carolina’s Drought Response Program (Berkeley, Charleston, Georgetown, Horry and Marion counties). Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Calhoun, Clarendon, Colleton, Hampton, Jasper, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland and Sumter counties moved into incipient drought, the first stage of drought. The incipient drought designation was maintained for all other counties. 

The DRC is the state’s major drought decision-making entity and determines drought severity as defined by the S.C. Drought Response Act to protect the state’s water resources. For more information about the DRC and the SC Drought Response Program, visit scdrought.com.

Most of the state has recorded below-normal rainfall since late last fall, with some stations in the Coastal Plain and Pee Dee regions receiving less than 60% of normal rainfall throughout winter and spring. 

The S.C. Department of Environmental Services provided an update on streamflow, groundwater and lake levels. Persistent, below-normal streamflow conditions in the counties of the Upstate provided support for maintaining an Incipient drought status for this area. Counties in the central Santee River Basin are also experiencing declining streamflow and groundwater levels, which supported an upgrade to Incipient status for these counties, while below-normal groundwater levels in Berkeley and Charleston counties supported an upgrade to Moderate status for these two counties. In the Northeast, below-normal streamflow levels in the Pee Dee region supported maintaining Incipient drought status in most counties and an upgrade to Moderate status for Marion and Horry counties, with 14-day average flows in the Waccamaw River near Longs reaching a two-percentile flow.

During the meeting, the S.C. Forestry Commission discussed the very active spring fire season. For the month of March, the SCFC responded to 301 fires that burned 7,264 acres. On March 1 alone, they responded to 104 wildfires. Since the beginning of the year, there has been 21.4% more fires compared with the 10-year normal (1,418 fires this year, 10-year average is 1,168).

While the number of fires has been significant, the number that really stands out is the acres burned. South Carolina has seen 176.5% greater-than-normal acreage burned this year compared with the 10-year average (30,965 acres this year, 10-year average is 11,200).

The SCFC continues to staff the Covington Drive Wildfire in the Carolina Forest area of Myrtle Beach. The fire is 90% contained; however, it continues to experience smoldering deep in the organic soils of the bays and reburn as dead/dry fuels fall into the smoldering areas. The fire area has received some rainfall over the last few weeks, but it will take high amounts of precipitation to fully extinguish this fire. 

The Drought Response Committee is closely monitoring conditions and will reconvene May 22, 2025.