Key Points
- Debby is finally on the move after making landfall at Bulls Bay this morning and will pull away to the north this afternoon and evening. Good riddance!
- Flash flooding will diminish this afternoon and evening as Debby moves away and rain tapers to lingering showers. However, afternoon and evening thunderstorms, primarily over the Coastal Plain over the next few days, could be heavy enough to cause localized flash flooding.
- River flooding will become the primary concern for South Carolinians after tonight. In addition to the extreme rainfall in our state since Monday, extreme rainfall has occurred in North Carolina; much of that will drain into our rivers in the coming days. Rapid rises will occur on the Pee Dee and Catawba Rivers through Friday.
- Moderate to major river flooding along the Coastal Plain will last for days as these rivers are normally slow to fall.
- The damaging wind risk is now low and will end this evening.
- Additional tornadoes are unlikely.
- There is no longer a risk of storm surge along our coast.
Debby is finally on the move and will soon exit to the north. At press time, it was centered near Pageland and moving north at about 10 mph. The Pee Dee region and Catawba River Area took it on the chin this morning with flooding rains and gusty winds that took down some trees. Wind and rain will lessen through this evening as the storm pulls away to the north.
This loop of visible satellite imagery ending at 12:31 p.m. EDT shows Debby spinning over the Carolinas and drifting northward.
Image Source: University of Wisconsin RealEarth
I'll go into more detail about trends in tropical cyclone activity in Friday's edition (and hopefully, my stretch of getting the day right continues ... if not, I'll have to drop in a "days since incident" meme). The nutshell version is that things look quiet for a little while. There are no features in the Atlantic that have a chance to develop for about the next five days.
However, we will have to deal with the storm's lingering effects for days. The primary concern will be river flooding, which will be serious in some areas. Major flooding is forecast along the Pee Dee and Little Pee Dee Rivers, and moderate (nearly major) flooding is expected along the Edisto River. If you're in Chesterfield County, the Pee Dee will rise fast over the next 24-36 hours. Keep in mind that the rivers along our Coastal Plain are slow to fall when they flood, so moderate to major flooding will last several days along those rivers. If you're in an area that floods along one of those rivers, follow the instructions of local officials and be ready to evacuate if your area is affected.
Once Debby gets out of the way, a "not as hot front" will move into South Carolina and turn stationary for days. The good part of that situation is that the front will keep it from getting terribly hot in the wake of Debby, with our highs mainly in the seasonable upper 80s and lower 90s across the state through the upcoming weekend. Dry areas of the western Upstate may be a bit hotter, though.
The bad part of this situation is that the front will trigger thunderstorms with slow-moving downpours along our Coastal Plain, which is the last thing that area needs. So, people in that area should be ready to react to localized flash flooding each day through at least Sunday. Of course, more rain may affect the extent of river flooding. Also, a locally severe storm can't be ruled out each afternoon, but you already know that our routine summertime thunderstorms can be locally severe.
This loop of visible satellite images shows Debby over South Carolina and a few inactive tropical waves crossing the Caribbean Sea and tropical Atlantic.
Image Source: University of Wisconsin RealEarth
However, it looks like the Atlantic tropics will turn more active again starting at the middle to end of next week. Early signs are that a storm could pass through the western Atlantic in 7-10 days (hopefully passing through figurative goalposts at Hatteras and Bermuda), at the start of what looks to be a busy spell that appears to be on the way for the 15th and beyond. So, Debby might only be the first of the storms we'll be dealing with this year, and you'll want to be sure you're ready if we do get another storm. If you need help with storm preparation, your go-to website is hurricane.sc.