Katse Dam site, Lesotho: photographs taken on visits in March-April 1988 as construction of the Dam began.
Katse: where are the photos from?
In March-April 1988, I visited my brother Stephen Turner in Lesotho. At the time, Stephen was head of the environmental division of the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority (LHDA). His focus was on compensation for those affected by the planned Katse Dam.
We first visited the site of the planned site of the new dam, together with a delegation of distinguished Mosotho. Later we visited Mamohau, to the north. This was before the completion of the new access road for construction machinery, and driving conditions were difficult. The following pictures are intended as a historical record of how the area looked before the dam was built, flooding the valley. Some of the pictures also feature Stephen, wearing a distinctive red woollen hat. He died in 2023.
To avoid crashing the site, I have reduced the resolution of these photos. If you wish to use them or need a higher resolution, contact me. Similarly, my recollection of some the sites is a bit hazy. If you have better info for the captions, or other background I could add here, let me know.
Katse Dam site
Delegation of Mosotho visiting Katse Dam site, 1988
Fuel depot near dam site, 1988
Hand-pumping fuel near dam site
Construction equipment, Katse Dam site, 1988
Mosotho delegation examine Katse Dam site, 1988
What they saw: dam site as construction starts, 1988
Mosotho herd boys near dam site, 1988
Basotho mountain village near Katse Dam site, 1988
Riverside field systems (later flooded) near Katse Dam site, 1988
White City trading store, 1988
Breakdown, Lesotho 1988 (the herd boys have their own truck)
Driving to Mamohau
Views from the road to Mamohau, 1988
Road to Mamohau, 1988
Stuck on the Mamohau road
Bulldozer stuck in mud on the Mamohau Road, 1988
The original vented ford across the Malibamatso river (later flooded) 1988
Sunlight catches a mountain village, Lesotho 1988
Fieldwork: interviewing villagers prior to dam construction
Malibamatso river and fields (later flooded), Lesotho, 1988
What to do next
I hope you’ve enjoyed this selection of historic 1988 photographs from the site of the future Katse dam. If you’d like to see some more of Lesotho, do explore my post “Pictures of Lesotho: the mountain kingdom” on this site. This includes a picture of the completed dam, from 2011.
Otherwise, do explore my many books! My Amazon author page is here, or click on the banner below.
