The Gaborone Dam in Botswana is officially full for the first time in 16 years. The drought hit hard and so the government is celebrating this achievement
In 2014 and 2015 the Gaborone Dam in Botswana ran dry due to lack of rain and severe drought. It’s two years later and the Dam is overflowing for the first time in 16 years.
Botswana was caught by Cyclone Dineo’s bringing with it heavy rains. The country was hit by severe flooding, washing away homes and roads. On the good news side though the dam was measured at over 100% capacity thanks to the week long rainfall.
In just over 3 weeks life has been restored around the dam, Baleseng Batlotleng wrote a beautiful piece about the life springing up around the dam’s edges.
“On the edge of the dam water lilies now full of life, float in their own reflections. At this moment the small fish and crabs swim downstream against a heavy tide pushing them out of the water.
They slap their tails against the thick reeds in the dam in an effort to survive. As I observe this, a fully grown African fish eagle flies past signaling its early retirement to its nest.”
Dikgatlhong Dam is the biggest dam in Botswana and has also reached full capacity at 102.4%. There are a total of 9 dams that have now reached 100% and over. The Water Utilities Corporation in Botswana has urged the population to continue with its conservation efforts.
“All water users are reminded that Botswana is a dry country and water conservation should be adopted as a way of life. If we do not conserve water we may find ourselves facing severe water shortages.”
The Botswana government took to their official twitter account to celebrate the dam being full.
DID YOU KNOW?
Gaborone Dam is the second largest dam in BW after Dikgatlhong with capacity of 141.4 million cubic meters (mcm) #Abundance 💯 pic.twitter.com/0KxTPSGFMd
— Botswana Government (@BWGovernment) February 25, 2017