Stunning pictures show the transformed Sahara Desert after an “exceptional” rain causes rivers to flow.
The desert in the southeast of Morocco has seen a rare downpour, which has created lakes and ponds where there once were none.
According to locals, the basin has been empty for almost 20 years. Last year was reportedly the country’s driest since the 1940s. According to the World Resources Institute, North Africa is among the world’s most water-stressed regions.
Then, in September, torrential rains led to floods, killing at least 28 people. Morocco’s weather agency called it “exceptional”.
“Everything suggests that this is a sign of climate change,” said Fatima Driouech, a Moroccan climate scientist. “But it’s too early to say definitively without thorough studies.”
Experts say climate change will only make these extreme weather events more frequent and intense, similar to Storm Helene in the USA.
But not all are concerned about the radical shift in weather. In Merzouga, a tourist town southeast of the capital, locals and tourists call the recent rains a gift for the area from the heavens.
A tour guide, Khalid Skandouli, said the rain has pulled in even more visitors to the area, with people being eager to witness this odd transformation.
A woman in his party, Laetitia Chevalier, said that the rain was “a blessing from the sky”. The French tourist added: “The desert became green again, the animals have food again, and the plants and palm trees came back to life.”
“We’re incredibly happy about the recent rains,” said Youssef Ait Chiga, another local tour guide leading a group of tourists to Yasmina Lake in the dunes.
In Morocco’s south, the rains have helped partially fill some reservoirs and replenish groundwater aquifers. But Driouech warns that “a single extreme event can’t bring lasting change”.