Millions of tonnes of ash and rocks from an erupting Philippine volcano could bury nearby communities due to heavy rain, authorities said Saturday, as tens of thousands flee over fears of a deadly explosion.

Paris was on high alert Saturday as the swollen Seine continued to creep higher, with forecasters warning the river could stay high throughout next week, especially if more rain is dumped on France.

California Governor Jerry Brown Friday signed an executive order detailing aims to have five million electric cars on the state's roads by 2030 -- by accelerating the production of such vehicles using financial incentives and rebates.

Leaks were starting to appear Friday in the basements of Paris buildings as the Seine inched higher, with forecasters warning that the river could stay high throughout next week, especially if more rain is dumped on France.

The Seine continued to rise Thursday, flooding streets and putting museums on an emergency footing as record rainfall pushed rivers over their banks across northeastern France.

For some residents of drought-stricken Cape Town, the prospect of the taps running dry is almost too much to bear.

A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Alaska early Tuesday, sparking tsunami warnings along the Pacific coasts of the U.S. and Canada that were later called off.

A strong quake rattled Indonesia Tuesday, sparking panic in the capital Jakarta and ripping roads apart in the countryside.

A rare heavy blanket of snow in Tokyo on Tuesday left thousands of travellers stranded and scores injured, as frozen conditions snarled public transport in the Japanese capital.

Japan's weather agency recorded as much as 23 centimetres (9.2 inches) of snow in some parts of Tokyo, the biggest snowfall since February 2014.

The spill from a sunken Iranian tanker off China's east coast has more than trebled in size, just over a week after the ship sank in a ball of flames.