Charley is the 12th storm to make landfall as a hurricane in South Carolina in the past century.

Charley will not rank among the devastating storms such as Hugo in 1989, Hazel in 1954 or Gracie in 1959. It more closely resembled Bob, which worked its way across the Florida peninsula as a tropical storm before reaching Category 1 hurricane status just before it came ashore at Fripp Island on July 25, 1988.

Charley lost some of its steam as it crossed Florida and did not gain much in its few hours over the Atlantic. Wind shear kept it from strengthening.

Most of the strong winds and heavy rain bands were on the eastern edge of Charley, which remained over the Atlantic. That is why coastal areas got less rain than expected, and the worst winds were in northern Horry County, where the storm’s center finally crossed completely over land.

While Charley baffled forecasters as it approached Florida, it was more predictable as it neared South Carolina. The center first made contact near McClellanville about 9:30 a.m., then bopped along the coast for nearly three hours. The forecast at 5 p.m. Friday predicted it would hit near McClellanville about 1 p.m.

— Joey Holleman