Summary of October 2016 South Carolina King Tides
Highest Predicted Tide: 7.2′
Highest Observed Tide: 7.8′
Predicted King Tides: 7
Observed King Tides: 21
Two days before the start of the October 2016 King Tide series, water levels from Hurricane Matthew peaked at 9.3 feet above mean lower low water (MLLW) in Charleston Harbor. This reading has only been exceeded at the Charleston Harbor Tide Station twice since data collection began in 1899. The first was in August of 1940, when an unnamed Category 2 hurricane pushed water levels to 10.2 feet above MLLW. The second was in September 1989, when water levels from Hurricane Hugo reached 12.5 feet above MLLW.
| DATE | AM/PM | KING TIDE PREDICTED? | KING TIDE OBSERVED? | PREDICTED WATER LEVEL | OBSERVED WATER LEVEL | DIFFERENCE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 8 | AM | No | Yes | 4.9 | 9.3 | 4.4 |
| Oct 9 | PM | No | No | 5.5 | 6.1 | 0.6 |
| Oct 10 | PM | No | Yes | 5.7 | 7 | 1.3 |
| Oct 11 | AM | No | Yes | 5.2 | 6.6 | 1.4 |
| Oct 11 | PM | No | Yes | 5.9 | 7 | 1.1 |
| Oct 12 | AM | No | Yes | 5.6 | 6.7 | 1.1 |
| Oct 12 | PM | No | Yes | 6.1 | 7.3 | 1.2 |
| Oct 13 | AM | No | Yes | 6 | 6.7 | 0.7 |
| Oct 13 | PM | No | Yes | 6.3 | 7.1 | 0.8 |
| Oct 14 | AM | No | Yes | 6.4 | 6.7 | 0.3 |
| Oct 14 | PM | No | Yes | 6.5 | 7.3 | 0.8 |
| Oct 15 | AM | Yes | Yes | 6.8 | 7.4 | 0.6 |
| Oct 15 | PM | Yes | Yes | 6.6 | 7.4 | 0.8 |
| Oct 16 | AM | Yes | Yes | 7 | 7.7 | 0.7 |
| Oct 16 | PM | No | Yes | 6.5 | 7.2 | 0.7 |
| Oct 17 | AM | Yes | Yes | 7.2 | 7.8 | 0.6 |
| Oct 17 | PM | No | Yes | 6.4 | 7.2 | 0.8 |
| Oct 18 | AM | Yes | Yes | 7.1 | 7.7 | 0.6 |
| Oct 18 | PM | No | Yes | 6.2 | 6.7 | 0.5 |
| Oct 19 | AM | Yes | Yes | 7 | 7.4 | 0.4 |
| Oct 20 | PM | Yes | Yes | 6.7 | 7.2 | 0.5 |
| Oct 21 | PM | No | Yes | 6.4 | 7.1 | 0.7 |
| Oct 22 | PM | No | Yes | 6.2 | 6.7 | 0.5 |
(Water levels in feet relative to MLLW at Charleston Harbor Tide Station.)
