Africa: Miracle Lakes

Two Lakes Mysteriously Appeared in Drought Striken Africa: Tunisia & Nigeria

In August 2014 a 32 ft deep - 2.5 acre lake appeared in drought stricken Tunisia. It's not understood how it happened; but there are theories:

1. a minor earthquake could have fractured and underground aquifer, allowing water to well up to the surface, but no aquifer has been found.
2. simply rainwater that collected in the canyon, although the lake is thought to have formed in the middle of a drought and the area receives very little rainfall.

The lake remains a mystery, but most locals believe that the lake was created by supernatural means, as a miraculous blessing to the people eking out a living here in the unforgiving terrain.

However, the clear, crystalline blue waters of the lake is not being replenished and have slowly turned to a muddy green due to a bloom of algae, which could be potentially poisonous. The presence of so much algae means the blessing could become a cesspool of bacteria and disease.

In November 2014 another mysterious lake appeared in Nigeria, the Ameke Nanchi in Enugu State. It's seen as a place of magical healing by locals. Allegedly, on November 11, 2014, local herdsmen heard a booming explosion and when they went to investigate the source they found that water inexplicably gushing from the ground. The herdsmen hailed the sight as a miracle prophesized by local legends and collected some of the water, which they reportedly brought to a blind friend who was allegedly healed by it. Meanwhile the lake grew in size until it had reached around 550 feet in diameter. It's still not understood exactly what caused the water to well up or what the origin to the alleged explosion could have been. [..snip]
The Prime Minister of Ameke-Nachi, Chief Dominic Onuigbo, said the lake appeared three times in the past 80 years, always in the driest, hottest times. [,,]
However, as time passed the water has become filthy, with 1000s of people urinating and defecating on its shores making it more or less a disease soup. It's feared an epidemic could be caused by people contracting a disease such as cholera, among many others, and carrying it back to one of the many far-flung locales they come from. The pool is also a very attractive breeding ground for mosquitos, and could potentially be ground zero for a horrific malaria outbreak. Time will tell if this lake turns out to be one of healing or one of death.  ​More here