CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Thursday, Feb. 9, marks 50 years since two feet of snow blanketed South Carolina in the historic "Great Southeast Snowstorm" of 1973.
It's been over a year since Charlotte saw measurable snow, by the way. There is a small chance we could see some heavy, wet flakes this weekend, but Brad Panovich says it won't be any accumulation outside of the North Carolina mountains.
While snowstorms are becoming increasingly few and far between for North Carolina and South Carolina, that wasn't the case in February 1973. A major snowstorm produced once-in-a-lifetime blizzard conditions and thundersnow.
Black and white newspaper clippings from that time bring some insight into the Great Southeast Snowstorm.
“It’s probably one of the biggest snow events that we’ve had here in the Carolinas, and that’s not just here in South Carolina but across portions of North Carolina as well," South Carolina climatologist Melissa Griffin said.
The storm dumped 24 inches of snow in Rimini, South Carolina, a statewide record for the most snow in a 24-hour period.
Griffin says the storm caught people by surprise. What started off as one of the warmest starts to February gave little warning as to what was coming. Ahead of the storm, temperatures across the region were near 70 degrees.
“We had sort of the one-two-punch of storm systems come through," Frank Strait said. "This was 50 years ago, and weather forecasting was more of an art than a science probably."
Thundersnow was reported in Little Mountain, South Carolina.
Blizzard conditions were observed in Florence, where wind gusts peaked at 35 mph.
“And if it hadn’t been for heavy tractors and blade, they would have lost some of their cattle," Griffin said. "Trying to imagine this going on in South Carolina is kind of crazy."
The snow was slow to melt, leaving parts of the state impassable for several days.
Although there has been a noticeable warming trend since the '70s and '80s, snow can still happen in the Carolinas in late winter and even into early spring.
Contact KJ Jacobs at kjacobs3@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.