Area gets 3-5 inches of rain from Hanna; sunny weather expected today

Charleston County and the fringes of neighboring counties got at least 3 inches of rain courtesy of Tropical Storm Hanna late Friday and early Saturday morning, the National Weather Service said.

Other than a good soaking, the effects, at first glance, didn't look so bad. The storm followed predictions that had it aiming for the South Carolina-North Carolina border.

There were no reports of any significant damage from around the county early Saturday morning.

The Charleston County Emergency Operations Center officially closed down operations at 9 a.m. Saturday. EOC officials said they will be keeping a close eye on Hurricane Ike in the event that its track changes.

Also Saturday morning, Gov. Mark Sanford released a statement thanking emergency planning personnel and saying that state beaches were "open for business." The governor had canceled planned Saturday meetings with officials in Georgetown and Horry counties when it became clear the state was not hit hard.

At Folly Beach, officials reported no damage and were expecting a "normal day."

More than a dozen surfers already were at the Washout at Folly Beach by 8 a.m., enjoying 6- to 7-foot waves. Among those out to ride the waves was 49-year-old state Sen. Chip Campsen, who said he was "trying to catch some of the swell before it dies."

There was no visible beach erosion, but officials will continue to monitor the situation throughout the morning.

Overnight, winds over the coast didn't reach much more than 30 mph, meteorologist Ron Morales said. That qualifies as a strong breeze, not even a gale.

"Some of the strongest winds were out over the water," Morales said.

One buoy about 40 miles east of Charleston recorded a 67 mph gust, just below hurricane strength.

Charleston had maximum gusts of 25-30 mph. Savannah had even less, about 20-25 mph. Areas around Hilton Head Island, however, did get gusts approaching tropical-storm force.

The wettest parts of the tri-county had about 6 inches of rain. Weather Service radar estimated 5.6 inches on Isle of Palms, 4.96 inches in McClellanville and 4.3 inches in Huger. Rainfall at Charleston International Airport measured 3.5 inches.

"It was a fairly short, 6-8 hour window of when this all fell," Morales said.

Initial damage reports were minimal. State troopers went to a tree that fell on U.S. Highway 17 A about a mile south of Clubhouse Road near Summerville about 4:30 a.m.

The U.S. Coast Guard's Sector Charleston reported no major problems overnight.

Morales said today would likely turn out nice and sunny, with some morning breeze near the shoreline. Highs were expected to reach the low-90s inland and mid-80s along the coast.

Post and Courier reporter Schuyler Kropf contributed to this story.

Reach Noah Haglund at 937-5550 or nhaglund@postandcourier.com