Remembering Myrtle Beach’s White Christmas 1989

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MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – Many of us dream of a white Christmas, but for the people of the Carolinas, it was a reality 35 years ago.

The largest snowstorm in history along the Southeast coast blanketed streets, beaches and homes with a record amount of snow and bitterly cold temperatures on Christmas morning.

So let yourself be transported back in time.

This rare event provided the perfect conditions for snow in the Carolinas. On Thursday, December 21st, a strong cold front moved through, bringing bitterly cold temperatures to the region. Combined with an Arctic high pressure system, it continued to pump in a strong northerly wind, holding the cold air in place just a day before the system moved in.

Because cold air was already present, some upper level energy was able to move southeastward and interact with the higher moisture content over the Gulf of Mexico. From there, a developing low-pressure system began to take shape off the coast of Florida and spread northeastward in the coming days. It was the perfect combination of cold air and the perfect ingredients for heavy snowfall here in the Grand Strand and Pee Dee.

This strong Christmas snowstorm began on December 22nd and continued to drop snow until Christmas Eve. Ultimately, areas along the Grand Strand and Pee Dee received more than 14 inches of snow and the high temperature was just 18 degrees.

With so much snow on the ground and the bitterly cold air, Christmas morning was record cold as temperatures dropped to 4 degrees in Myrtle Beach and 0 degrees in Florence!

This mess of a winter storm will always be talked about. It is also a good reminder that something that happened once can happen again as weather loves to repeat history from time to time.

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