MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – Winter thunder does not predict snow in the following 10 days, according to a WMBF News analysis of two decades of weather data across the Grand Strand and Pee Dee regions.
WMBF meteorologist Matt Bullock analyzed the last 10 significant snow events in the area over the past 20 years and found that winter thunder preceded snow within 10 days only twice — a 20% correlation rate.
“Thunderstorms and snow really don’t correlate,” Bullock said. “Thunderstorms need warm unstable air while snow needs cold air at multiple levels of the atmosphere.”
Weather conditions work against folklore
The atmospheric requirements for thunderstorms and snow are fundamentally different, making the folklore scientifically unlikely.
While it remains possible to have thunderstorms during a winter storm or even thunder snow, Bullock said that does not support the claim that thunder guarantees snow within 10 days.
What actually brings snow to the Carolinas
Snow in the Carolinas requires specific meteorological conditions, according to Bullock.
The key factors include a strong arctic cold front, cold air damming with a back door cold front, and low pressure forming from the Gulf of Mexico.
STORNG ARCTIC COLD FRONT
Strong arctic cold front can bring just enough cold air for snow if there is enough moisture with the system
COLD AIR DAMMING/WEDGE EVENT
For some folks that don’t know a cold air damming event is. It is a phenomenon only in the Carolinas. High pressure system offshore to our northeast brings cooler air across the Carolinas. The cold air gets trapped by the Appalachian Mountain and cold air continues to build.. And sometime we can see a backdoor cold front move in from the Atlantic. This can bring snow or freezing rain across our area.
LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM FROM THE GULF
Storm sytems from the Gulf, pump lots of moisture into the Carolinas.. If temperatures are cold enough, this will dump a lot of snow. an example of this was the 1989 White Christmas. Where a low pressure system dumped 14.5″ of snow in Myrtle Beach.
The WMBF First Alert Weather team provides advance warning when winter weather threatens the region.
Feel more informed, prepared, and connected with WMBF. For more free content like this, download our apps. Have feedback that can help us improve? Click here.
Copyright 2026 WMBF. All rights reserved.