Record-breaking heat brings Beaufort County crowds out in droves
Not only did the unusually warm weather break the area's record for Christmas Eve and tie it for Christmas Day, the heat broke the record set for the day after Christmas when the mercury reached a whopping 81 by midday on Saturday.
"So that's three straight days for record highs," said Blair Holloway with the National Weather Service Charleston.
In fact, dozens of cities around the Southeast broke record highs for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, according to www.weather.com.
From Washington, D.C., to Raleigh, N.C., people seemed to be out taking full advantage of the warmer temperatures, and residents and visitors to Beaufort County alike were no different.
"That's why we moved here," said Oanh Hayden, who was out enjoying an ice cream cone with her daughter Shauna on Saturday.
The two, who were sitting in front of Kilwins at Tanger Outlet just after noon on Saturday, said the warmer weather -- even the unusually warm weather -- was fine with them.
The family had moved to the area from Michigan about four years ago and preferred the heat over the extremely cold temperatures of the winters there.
"But I like a little of both," Hayden said.
Meanwhile, inside Kilwins, co-owner Michelle Cheadle said business was decidedly up from December of last year.
In fact, the parking lots for both Tanger 1 and Tanger 2 were overflowing with vehicles on Saturday as shoppers strolled the open air outlet wearing shorts and flip-flops.
"It's been quite active today," Cheadle said from behind the counter.
A Hilton Head Island resident of more than 30 years, Cheadle said she'd never seen it quite this warm for the holidays.
"I prefer it to be a little cooler and a little less humid," she said laughing. "But I'll take it any day over the freezing cold."
Over at Coligny Beach people streamed down the boardwalk wearing shorts and bathing suits as nearby lots for beach parking overflowed with vehicles.
Out on the beach, visitors marveled at a bank of sea fog sitting low on the horizon and shrouding the water -- perhaps the only white aspect of nature those hoping for a "White Christmas" would see this year.
But neither the fog nor the balmy weather seemed to phase friends Christina Good, Mikaela Langs and Ava VanMarter, of Hilton Head.
The three teens had stretched hammocks between two palms overlooking the beach and were having a great time "lazing around," they said.
"I like it," said Good. "I'm not a fan of the cold, so I like it."
"I like it too," said Langs from the middle hammock. "But then again, I'm from Chicago, so I would like a little more balance."
VanMarter, who had hopped out of her hammock to dig her foot into the sand, seemed to round out the teens' approval of the weather.
"I wish it were 80 degrees all year round," she said.
How hot was it?
While the National Weather Service Charleston doesn't keep historical records for specific areas around Beaufort County, the service did see record-breaking temperatures for the area for the last three days as recorded by gauges at Charleston International Airport.
Those included:
Follow reporter Mindy Lucas on Twitter at twitter.com/MindyatIPBG.
Related content:
- Beaufort County's white Christmas of 1989, Dec. 23, 2015
This story was originally published December 26, 2015 at 6:38 PM with the headline "Record-breaking heat brings Beaufort County crowds out in droves."