Middle Letaba Dam
When in full capacity, the Middle Letaba becomes Limpopo's third largest dam, but the Middle Letaba Dam only reaches its full capacity when the river is in flood. The dam seldom reaches its full capacity because the engineers overestimated the yield of the river feeding the dam. The error in the assessment also resulted in water shortages for competing water users.
Construction of the dam started in 1980 under Gazankulu government and serves mainly for water supply to Giyani and Hlanganani. The dam is situated alongside the R578 road to Giyani and Elim. The hazard potential of the dam has been ranked high (3). The dam is popularly known as 'Sterkrivier Dam' by the local people, the name Sterkrivier (Strong river) was given by the Afrikaner people, it is said that before the construction of the dam in 1980, the water that used to flow in this river was so powerful to an extent that a new name was given to the river, hence 'Sterkrivier'.
See also
References