by WILL FOLKS***South Carolinians braced last week for the arrival of ‘Wintermageddon,’ only to see the storm dramatically underwhelm – and underperform meteorological expectations. Most significantly, sleet and snow outperformed freezing rain – which some attributed to the failure of AI-driven models. Forecasters are calling for the second major winter system in as many weeks to develop in the Carolinas on Friday evening (January 30, 2026) and continue into Sunday (February 1, 2026). ******“We are very confident about another Arctic blast of cold air infiltrating the Carolinas this weekend,” the Wilmington, North Carolina office of the National Weather Service (NWS) wrote on X. — Mitch West (@SCweather_wx) January 28, 2026***If these forecasts prove accurate, South Carolina’s capital could wind up seeing its most significant snow accumulation since January 2011 – when three inches fell in and around Columbia.