Sacramento, Calif., records 47th day with no rain

Sacramento had its 47th consecutive day without rainfall Thursday, setting a winter drought record for California's capital, the National Weather Service said.

Forecasters say the record is likely to become more impressive since no rainfall is predicted for at least another week, the Sacramento Bee reported.

"That's pretty darn impressive," said Kelly Redmond, deputy director at the Western Regional Climate Center in Reno, Nev. "It's just tremendous that this kind of spectacular dry period has continued for so long."

It's not just Sacramento. The entire state is enduring a record drought.

Redmond said the 30 months that ended in December were the driest period of that length since statewide records began in 1895.

Much of California, especially in the north, has a Mediterranean climate with hot dry summers balanced by wild rainy winters. The record-breaking drought has been accompanied by winter wildfires.

A fire this week in Sequoia National Forest occurred at 7,500 feet, an area that would normally be deep in snow. Earlier this month, a fire in Humboldt County on California's north coast burned 333 acres in one of the wettest parts of the state. UPI