The third storm of the season, Cindy originated from a low-pressure area associated with a cold front located east of northern Florida.

Cindy turned westward because of a high-pressure area positioned to its north, and further intensified into a weak hurricane off the coast of the Carolinas on July 8.

Early on July 9, Cindy made landfall near McClellanville, South Carolina, and re-curved to the northeast along the Fall Line as a tropical depression.

One driver was killed in Georgetown, South Carolina after colliding with a fallen tree, and five indirect deaths were caused by poor road conditions wrought by the storm in New England.

The origins of Cindy can be attributed to a deepening low-pressure area that tracked from the Great Lakes as a related cold front traveled southeastward and became stationary over the Atlantic, extending from northern Florida to Bermuda.

[1][2] Tropical cyclones of this origin typically remain at a small size and evolve slowly, and Cindy complied to this pattern.

Cindy then began to accelerate as it curved slightly towards the northeast, and eventually regained tropical storm status late on July 10 as it emerged into the Atlantic.

Cindy scraped the southern fringe of the Delmarva Peninsula near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay at approximately 00:00 UTC on July 11, and rapidly traveled northeastward during the day.

[15] Along the main street of Georgetown, the Sampit River topped its banks, resulting in flooding that impacted business in the area.

[5] At Folly Beach, Sullivan's Island, and Isle of Palms, only 600 people of the normal population of approximately 6,500 chose not to evacuate.

Several points throughout the state measured at least 3 inches (76 mm) of rainfall, including Columbia, Charleston, Myrtle Beach, and Sumter.

[9] Several thousand sought safety in Red Cross shelters in schools and armories,[8][21] though the Weather Bureau announced it was safe for evacuees in Charleston to return to their homes shortly after the storm came ashore.

[5][10] As Cindy moved inland, tornadoes touched down in North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland along the outer bands of the storm.

Many small vessels sought safety, but the ship Lady Godiva sank near North West Arm; the two people on board were later rescued.