Records, not rain, fell Wednesday in Sacramento. Temperatures topped out at 66 degrees, a record high for Jan. 4.

Both of the National Weather Service's official monitoring stations in Sacramento recorded 66 degrees, said Drew Peterson, weather service meteorologist. The previous high for the date at the station near California State University, Sacramento, was 64 degrees in 2003. At Sacramento Executive Airport, the previous record was 65 degrees in 1934, he said.

Although Wednesday was expected to be the warmest day of the week, Peterson said temperatures likely will remain above normal into the weekend, with highs in the low- to mid-60s in the Valley. Some foothill areas will be even warmer.

And that means no rain in the forecast.

"It looks like more dry weather through mid-January," Peterson said.

Citing unseasonably dry weather conditions, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is urging the public to be particularly cautious about activities that could spark fires.

The year's first snow survey, conducted Tuesday by the state Department of Water Resources, indicated that statewide water content is at 19 percent of normal, setting a course for one of the driest winters on record, fire officials said.

Although many areas of the state are experiencing cooler temperatures, the drier than normal conditions, coupled with wind and low humidity, frequently increased the fire danger over the past month, officials said, with Cal Fire crews responding to more wildfires than they typically do in December.

"Fire activity in Northern California during winter is very rare, where snow-covered mountains and rain-soaked hillsides typically keep the fire danger relatively low," Chief Ken Pimlott, Cal Fire director, said in a written statement. He said rainfall amounts over the next couple of months will be an indicator of the type of fire activity to expect in spring and summer.

In response to the above-normal fire activity, Cal Fire has increased staffing. In many areas, the agency also has canceled burn days or banned debris burning.

One side effect of a dry winter is less vegetation growth to fuel fires, although trees would be dry, the National Weather Service's Peterson said.

The marine flow through the Delta brings moisture to the Sacramento area in the form of fog, he said, but that usually doesn't affect the foothills.

Despite the dry winter thus far, Peterson said, "We've had dry months in the past and come back with a bit of precipitation and come back to normal by the end of the water year."

So far this year, Sacramento has received 2.66 inches of rain, 33 percent of the normal 7.85 inches for this point in the season, he said. This time last year, the rainfall total was 10.24 inches.

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