Dramatic drone footage shared by The Associated Press on Sunday shows the Sahara Desert flooded after reportedly receiving a year’s worth of rainfall in two days.
video It shows a blue lagoon bathed in palm trees and sand dunes. Some of the world’s largest hot desert-affected areas are in southeastern Morocco, which typically receives less than 10 inches of rainfall annually. reported.
According to the Associated Press, these areas had two days of rainfall in September that were above the annual average. Tata, Tagonite, and Merzouga are three affected desert communities in southeastern Morocco. Tata was one of the worst affected areas. More than 3.9 inches of rain fell in Tagonite in 24 hours.
A rare extratropical cyclone that hit northwestern Sahara on September 7th and 8th caused flooding and regeneration of Lake Sahara. According to NASA. Several villages in Morocco also continued to be shaken by massive flash flooding, washed out roads, and disruption of electricity and water supplies, NASA reported. Large areas of Algeria, Tunisia and Libya were also flooded. (Related: Massive Sahara storm blankets countries thousands of miles away with dust)
Some areas of Morocco, which was hit by a devastating earthquake on September 8, 2023, also required government relief after flooding. More than 20 people have been killed in floods in Morocco and Algeria, according to the Associated Press.
“It’s been 30 to 50 years since we’ve had this much rain in such a short period of time.Geographically speaking, we’re on the eastern slopes of the Atlas Mountains, so it’s almost as if all the rain falls in 30 to 50 years. “I noticed that it seemed to be raining in the same area,” said Oussin Youabeb from Morocco. The Meteorological Directorate told The Associated Press.
The storm interrupted six consecutive years of drought, forcing farmers to lay fields fallow and neighboring communities to ration water, according to the Associated Press.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Published satellite images A similar phenomenon can be seen in various lakes in the Sahara Desert in September. According to the Associated Press, one such lake is the famous Lake Iliki (also spelled Iliki), located between Tata and Zagora. It was flooded, ending a 50-year drought.
The air in the affected areas retains moisture, possibly causing further evaporation, which could lead to rain falling as thunderstorms rather than organized precipitation, changing the region’s weather for months and years to come, YouAbev said AP. told the news agency.
The lake and puddles reportedly surprised tourists and local residents.
Excess rainfall could refill dammed reservoirs and replenish the large underground aquifers that desert communities depend on, but it’s unclear how much drought relief will occur.
