14 Homes Destroyed by Tornadoes this Week in South Carolina

ALLENDALE, S.C. (AP) — Severe storms that moved across South Carolina earlier this week caused at least 13 tornadoes and hail the size of baseballs, emergency officials said.

Fourteen homes were destroyed by the tornadoes as they moved through Tuesday in Allendale, Bamberg, Clarendon and Orangeburg counties, the South Carolina Emergency Management Division said.

Another five homes were damaged by a storm that dropped baseball size hail in Horry County on Thursday, officials said.

The National Weather Service continues to survey the damage and has determined as of Saturday that at least 13 tornadoes hit the state.

The strongest tornado moved through Allendale County into Bamberg County and then Orangeburg County, destroying homes and knocking down trees and power lines on its 35-mile (56-kilometer) path, forecasters said.

It was an EF-3 tornado with winds of at least 160 mph (247 km/h), the weather service said.

Other tornadoes were reported in Aiken, Lexington, Calhoun, Colleton, Hampton, Dorchester and Clarendon counties.

Two years ago, nearby Hampton County saw the strongest tornado to hit the state since 1995 when an April 13, 2020, twister killed five people.

That tornado was an EF-4 with winds estimated at 175 mph (280 km/h) — or the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, according to a report by the National Weather Service in Charleston.