Teo Blašković founded The Watchers in 2011 and edited it until 2026, covering seismic and volcanic activity, extreme weather, space weather and near-Earth objects. Articles on this page are his archive.

  • Phreatic eruption, pyroclastic flows at Mayon volcano, Philippines

    ByTeo Blašković

    A phreatic eruption occurred at the Mayon volcano summit on Sunday, February 4, 2024, at 08:37 UTC, lasting 169 seconds. The event generated a 1 200 m (4 000 feet) tall ash plume , rockfalls and pyroclastic flows. The volcano’s Alert Level remains at 2 and authorities are reminding the public to avoid the Permanent Danger Zone.

  • Powerful atmospheric river triggers state of emergency in Southern California, rare Level 4 of 4 risk of excessive rainfall

    ByTeo Blašković

    An intense atmospheric river event hit California on Sunday, February 4, 2024, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency in eight counties due to the potential for “life-threatening” flooding, mudslides, and widespread power outages. The National Weather Service warns of significant rainfall, powerful winds, and heavy snowfall continuing over the next few days.

  • San Francisco exceeds seasonal rain totals, another atmospheric river and extremely dangerous winds approaching California, U.S.

    ByTeo Blašković

    Severe storms swept through California on Thursday, February 1, 2024, causing widespread flooding, power outages, and fallen trees. The first of two storms, part of strong atmospheric river systems, hit the San Francisco Bay Area before moving south towards Los Angeles, delivering over 100 mm (4 inches) of rain in some areas. Officials warn of a “significant threat” from an even larger storm expected over the weekend, with the potential for excessive rain, heavy snow, and strong winds across the state through Tuesday, February 7.

  • Catalonia’s worst drought in a century prompts declaration of drought emergency, new water restrictions, Spain

    ByTeo Blašković

    Barcelona and the wider region of Catalonia have declared a drought emergency following three consecutive years of insufficient rainfall, leading to reservoir levels falling critically low. Pere Aragones, the head of the regional government, announced immediate water-saving restrictions affecting six million people. With reservoirs at less than 16% capacity, the emergency is described as the worst drought Catalonia has experienced in a century, necessitating drastic reductions in water usage for residents, municipalities, farmers, and businesses alike.

  • Medicane “Nikolai” (Avgi) makes landfall in Israel

    ByTeo Blašković

    Medicane “Nikolai” — internationally known as Storm Avgi — formed during the afternoon hours (UTC) of February 1, 2024, near the coast of Egypt as the first medicane of the year. Before making landfall in Israel on February 2, the storm brought heavy rain and snow to parts of Greece and Cyprus.

  • Violent clashes outside European Parliament amid massive farmer protests

    ByTeo Blašković

    European farmers took the protest near the EU summit in Brussels today, blocking roads with 1 300 tractors and clashing with police. The protests started earlier this month, but demonstrations have now spread across Europe as farmers from Belgium, France, Italy, and Spain demand help with taxes and rising costs. EU leaders acknowledged the crisis, amid calls for action ahead of European Parliament elections.