HomeOld_PostsThe history of Kariba Dam: Part Five

The history of Kariba Dam: Part Five

Published on

By Michelina Andreucci

AT the precise spot where the Kariba Dam wall was constructed is an abnormally strong turbulence and gravitational pull into the water’s depth.
It is the site where the BaTonga buried their chiefs and held their annual ceremonies and rituals.
It is also believed to be Nyaminyami’s sett.
Could the turbulence be the mysterious force of the progenitors?
Various fossils have been found by archaeologists on an island bed in Lake Kariba
Weighing between 500-800kg and 6 – 7m in length, the Volcanodon Karibaensis, was one of the larger dinosaur species which existed in pre-historic Zimbabwe.
These dinosaurs were known to have lived at a time when huge torrents of basalt lava erupted and changed the desert into the volcanic landscape we know today.
Could this long-time resident of the area be, in fact, Nyaminyami?
Is it possible that Nyaminyami is simply a large species of the air-breathing catfish ‘Vundu’ (Heterobranchus longifilis) found mainly in rivers and other freshwater habitats such as Kariba?
With a serpent-like body the Vundu is the largest freshwater fish in Southern Africa, reaching up to 150 cm in length and a maximum recorded weight of 55kg.
It can survive out of water for extensive periods of time and is said to charge with powerful bursts of speed.
It is strong enough to pull a man down to the bottom of the water.
Evidence of strange aquatic beings is not unusual throughout the world.
There is no evidence of these elusive creatures sighted on rare occasions by few locals who claim to have seen them, yet many BaTonga elders speak of Nyaminyami’s memory with conviction and endearment.
Nevertheless, Nyaminyami was first documented by Major A. St. Hill Gibbons who first surveyed the area as a possible crossing site for the transcontinental railway in the late 1890s.
This dragon-like creature is described by some as looking like a whirlwind with a snake’s torso and a fish’s head.
During difficult times of droughts the BaTonga were sustained by removing strips of his flesh to eat.
In 1941 Major Gibbons returned to the area to survey for potential of a dam at Kariba Gorge.
He was accompanied by Mrs Goods, his companion who must have been the first white female settler to visit Kariba.
Rain gauging stations were established in the country from as early as 1907 by the Irrigation Department.
In 1946, the Department of Water Development’s Hydrological Branch established a gauging station in the Kariba area with automatic water level recording.
These gauging stations gave the Southern Rhodesian authority the edge in deciding the location of the dam and were invaluable in giving early warnings of impending floods to the contractors throughout the flood season beginning in December until the end of the peak season in March.
Through various means, the Hydrological Department, working in close co-operation with the Meteorological Department, was able to work out the speed any impending floods could travel.
During the initial stages of Kariba’s construction, one such warning was given and duly ignored.
This resulted in the inundation and loss of a bulldozer, pumps and other equipment and the pontoon bridge was washed away.
This incident was followed by a ‘double peak’ flood; the first on record since dam records began in 1907.
Although the damage was minor, it delayed work on the North Bank coffer dam.
Could this have been the first of Nyaminyami’s warnings?
As a result of heavy overnight downpours in February 1950, extensive landslides from the gorge through to the Kariba area, destroyed most of the preliminary work and campsites; engulfing and killing four white workers.
The indigenous workers had gone to a beer drink and their lives were spared.
The rain seasons of 1957 and 1958 caused two of the worst floods on record.
In 1957 the floods resulted in the loss of heavy equipment and the North Bank coffer dam being submerged completely.
During the floods of 1958, it washed away much of the dam which was nearing completion.
Reaching unprecedented levels, the flood waters destroyed the partially built dam wall and heavy equipment, causing the death of 90 workers.
Seventeen of those were left plastered in the dam wall and are still there today.
The bodies of the others disappeared mysteriously.
The BaTonga elders explained that Nyaminyami, separated from his wife by Kariba Dam, was deeply offended and caused the disasters; to appease his anger a sacrifice had to be made.
BaTonga elders still claim that it was only through their intervention that Nyaminyami was placated, but was this appeasement adequate?
Lake Kariba is said to have a meteorological and seismic effect on the area where occasional earth tremors have been experienced; as a result of the lake’s pressure on the earth’s surface as it settles down.
Others believe it is Nyaminyami hitting against the wall trying to reach his wife on the other side.
As a result of Kariba Dam, the Zimbabwe Seismological network was set up in 1958.
Five regions of seismic activity have been demarcated with magnitudes of 4, 0 to 7,9 on the Richter scale.
These are: the Zambezi Region, Western Region, Eastern Border Region and Northern and Southern Regions of the Zambezi.
A hypothesis suggests the lake is extensive enough to have developed a weather and climate of its own, resulting in increased rainfall over Zimbabwe.
However, careful measurements have shown that only within 50km of the lake has there been any increase in rainfall activity.
Kariba presents us with many other questions that need to be answered:
Are these strange serpentine half-human-half-fish creatures related to one another?
Given Kariba is a seismic area, have we conducted a prognostic survey to intercept a possible seismic catastrophe?
Can the perceived structural faults still hold back Nyaminyami or more scientifically, seismic and natural centrifugal forces?
Do we have measures in place in the event of a repeat of the 1957 and 1958 floods?
Should we continue to rely on hydro-power, given the unpredictable weather patterns and global warming or should we opt for alternative power sources?
Will we encounter the angry children of Nyaminyami in the future?
Has there been a traditional appeasement ceremony held at the site for the strife and dissension to the peoples, Chiefdom and deity?
Can we justify the forceful removal of a people and their deity from their homes if Kariba Dam fails?
Forty-seven (47) years later in 2005, 1 000km from the sea, the Zambezi’s Gwembe Valley experienced an enormous earth tremor.
Was it the wrath of the BaTonga ancestors or human mismanagement and neglect that have plunged the nation into this power crisis?
Dr Michelina Rudo Andreucci is a Zimbabwean-Italian Researcher, Industrial Design Consultant and Specialist Interior Decorator. She is a published author in her field.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Latest articles

Musician pens seven books

By Fidelis Manyange CHITUNGWIZA-based musician, known in music circles as Gaban Kufemamoto Chebani Chedondo Chegwenzi...

A successful first quarter

THE first quarter of the year is done. As a people, we have not been...

FOZEU’s call for strike…an attempt at provoking anarchy

By Elizabeth Sitotombe IN an attempt to sow anarch across the country by calling for...

Chitepo’s fight for land

This story was first published on 21/03/2016 By Patience Rusare LAND ranked highest among the grievances...

More like this

Musician pens seven books

By Fidelis Manyange CHITUNGWIZA-based musician, known in music circles as Gaban Kufemamoto Chebani Chedondo Chegwenzi...

A successful first quarter

THE first quarter of the year is done. As a people, we have not been...

FOZEU’s call for strike…an attempt at provoking anarchy

By Elizabeth Sitotombe IN an attempt to sow anarch across the country by calling for...

Discover more from Celebrating Being Zimbabwean

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading