'The Smoke That Thunders' or the world's largest waterfall - Victoria Falls - is struggling to live. The recent flow at Africa's biggest waterfall is at its lowest since 1995.
This is threatening tourism and electricity generation in Zimbabwe and Zambia. Victoria Falls is where southern Africa's Zambezi river cascades down 100 meters into a gash in the earth and has drawn millions of holidaymakers to Zimbabwe and Zambia for their stunning views.
However, it is not unusual for Victoria Falls to run low on water during the dry season, according to reports.
The Zambezi River Authority said that flow has slumped to 109 cubic meters-per-second (3,850 cubic feet), a 1.7-kilometer (1.1 miles) curtain of falling water at the peak of a normal wet season.
According to the Zambian President, Edgar Lungu, drying up of Victoria Falls is due to climate change and has warned that one day they could disappear entirely.
He questioned if people would want to want to pass by the Zambezi without the mighty Victoria Falls.
According to officials, they typically slow down during the dry season but this year had brought an unprecedented decline in water levels.
Dominic Nyambe, a seller of tourist handicrafts said, outside his shop in Livingstone, on the Zambian side, said that it is his first experience of seeing it like this. He added that the drought affects them because clients can see on the Internet. They do not have many tourists.
Local businesses in Zambia and Zimbabwe compete to have visitors come to their corner of the falls.
The drought is threatening the livelihoods of regional farmers.
Zimbabwe and Zambia have experienced a long-running drought which has resulted in incessant power cuts due to a reliance on hydroelectric power. Over five million people need food aid in Zimbabwe alone.
A video that had 40,000 hits on YouTube sparked claims that Victoria Falls was 'almost bone dry.' It features an unknown woman who claims to be on the Livingstone, Zambia side of Victoria Falls, asking people to pray for rain. She funnily refers to the Victoria Falls as "Victoria Rocks."
The video is headlined, "Victoria Falls Are Almost Bone Dry" published on September 26, 2019.
The prolonged drought is affecting much of Southern Africa.
The Zambian president finds it surprising when people trivialize it and say 'climate change is not real.' He said that things can change only if rich countries do more to combat climate change and help poor nations.
The falls on the Zambezi river bestrides the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia and the flow of the stream fills the Kariba Dam, the site of the two countries' largest power plants.
The drought could curtail a lucrative white-water rafting industry in the gorge below the cataract and may see the power plants at Kariba shut down, worsening power cuts in both countries.
One of the seven natural wonders of the world, the falls is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site which describes it as the" largest curtain of falling water in the world."
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