South Carolina — A thick, milky fog blankets the Midlands this morning, softening headlights and muting color as moisture clings to trees, lawns, and interstate shoulders. Visibility drops to a quarter mile or less in parts of Columbia and across east-central South Carolina, and the quiet haze creates a deceptively slick feel on bridges and low-lying stretches of I-26, I-20, and Highway 1. With Thanksgiving travel beginning to ramp up, drivers should leave early, reduce speed, and use steady low-beam lights through the mid-morning hours.
According to the National Weather Service in Columbia, a Dense Fog Advisory remains in effect until 10 AM, and conditions gradually improve as sun begins to break through. For now, calm air traps moisture at the surface, allowing the fog to linger longer than usual. Once it lifts, temperatures rise quickly into the upper 70s, giving the region a warm, almost late-season feel despite the calendar pressing toward Thanksgiving.
Saturday brings a shift. A band of showers and a few thunderstorms could sweep across the area in the early afternoon, the earliest sign of the broad national winter-transition pattern developing across the U.S. To be fair, Columbia sits too far south for any winter precipitation concerns yet, but national models continue to hint at heavy snow potential—3 to 15 inches in parts of the Northwest, Northern Plains, and Great Lakes—between Nov. 25 and Dec. 3. A colder push eventually slides eastward after Thanksgiving, reaching the Carolinas with cooler-than-normal air late next week.
Sunday turns quieter and cooler with crisp sunshine and light breezes—ideal for early holiday errands, decorating, or regional travel. After all, Thanksgiving sits less than a week away, and changing patterns across the country could tighten travel windows fast.
Five-Day Outlook for Columbia, SC:
Fri: 79/61 – Fog early; warm and partly sunny.
Sat: 80/54 – Showers, slight thunder chance; breezy.
Sun: 71/43 – Sunny and cooler.
Mon: 70/50 – Sunny; mild.
Tue: 75/59 – PM rain chance; travel impacts possible.
