Hot water eruption in the middle of farmland — Slovenia, you wild

This week was busy. And by busy I mean...I actually spent a few days with my family. Which doesn’t happen often, trust me. But my husband was working four days in a row, my dad had a birthday party, and my brother’s girlfriend was working too, so I thought: Why not pack my things and go?
I love hanging out with my brother, we’re basically the same person… so chaos guaranteed. 😊

But spending time with family means one thing...no resting.
We’re either out somewhere, talking for hours, or playing cards until midnight like we’re in a casino. Peace? Never heard of her. But honestly ...I missed such days. My social battery was blinking orange, but still happy.

And then, of course...my brother wanted to show me something. Actually, I wanted to see it.
“What?” you ask?

Hot. Water.
Yup. You read that right.

He threw me into the car, stopped to buy us a beer (yes, one, we're civilised… kind of), and off we went. A geothermal spring literally exploded in the middle of the fields. A few weeks ago he sent me photos and I told him...if you don’t take me there in person, we are no longer speaking. He loves me, so he complied. He can’t survive without my voice anyway 😉

They’ve been writing about this for months. I kept reading updates like a little detective, so finally...I had to see it with my own eyes. Soon they’ll probably close the area… but not today!
They only put up a big orange tape around it. No sign saying don’t enter.
And well… there’s still a little rebel inside me...so we jumped over ( I mean...we crawled under). Hah.

Now I hope those ten minutes there don’t kill me later because nobody really knows what’s inside that water yet. My brother said it smells like chlorine. I said oil. In reality, neither of us has a clue. One beer does wonders for confidence. Classic me & my brother.

I'll explain a bit, but honestly...the pictures say everything. Unreal scenes.

So what actually happened?

In Rakičan, hot water started bursting out of an old oil well that was supposed to be sealed ages ago.
Supposedly. 😂

The water flooded over 20 hectares of fields, and farmers are worried...and understandably so. This is their work, their land, and now it looks like a giant muddy sauna out there.

The geothermal water (over 50°C hot) has been flowing for weeks. The well was drilled in 1986, shut down in 2001, inspected again in 2022. Eventually, farmers noticed the leak and called officials...and then everything escalated.

Early tests show it’s geothermal water with minerals, oil levels below limits, and for now no danger to drinking water. Good news. No toxic mutant potatoes yet.

Why did it happen?
Still a mystery. Maybe corrosion on the wellhead, maybe machinery damage, maybe mini-earthquakes. Slovenia plot twist.

They plan permanent repair...open it, fix it, seal it for good. When? No one knows.
For now they are collecting water in pools, redirecting some into rivers, and monitoring everything like hawks.

Experts say there’s no danger for now...but don’t drink it, don’t bathe in it, and definitely don’t cook pasta in it.

Funny thing is...with proper management, this could become a geothermal energy source. A good one.
But hey… this is Slovenia. We move slow. Baby snail slow. 😊))

The RAK-1 well (great name, right?) shows that even “dead” wells can wake up like a volcano on Monday morning. Luckily, quick monitoring prevented worse damage.

So… what do you think of the pictures?

With love, @tinabrezpike ❤️