An enormous new dam in northeastern Turkey has begun to fill its reservoir, slowly submerging the town of Yusufeli despite years of protests by locals and environmental groups. The town’s 7,000 residents have been relocated by the government to newly built apartment blocks nearby. The Yusufeli Dam rises 886 feet (270 meters) above the Çoruh River (also referred to as Chorokhi), and its hydroelectric power plant is expected to begin producing electricity in May 2023. The photographer Yasin Akgul visited Yusufeli last week, capturing images of locals looking on as their former town is swallowed up.
A Turkish Town Swallowed by a Rising Reservoir
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![An aerial view of steep valley that is partially flooded, with several engulfed buildings and tall piers for a road bridge that is under construction.]()
Read moreA photograph taken on April 4, 2023, shows pillars and buildings of the village of Yusufeli in the rising water of a new reservoir on the Çoruh River (also referred to as Chorokhi), in Artvin province in northeastern Turkey. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
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![An aerial photograph of a large dam under construction]()
Read moreThis drone photo from November 14, 2019, shows the construction of the Yusufeli Dam and hydroelectric power plant. #
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![An aerial view of a village in a narrow valley in a mountainous area]()
Read moreA view of the village of Yusufeli in September 2022, before it began to be flooded by the waters behind the newly constructed dam #
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![An aerial photograph of a village in a mountain valley being flooded by a dam]()
Read moreThis photograph taken on April 4, 2023, shows the rising water that is gradually submerging the village of Yusufeli. #
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![Four people stand on the shore of a reservoir looking out over a town that is being flooded.]()
Read moreLocal residents look on at Yusufeli being slowly swallowed up by the rising water, on April 4, 2023. #
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![A half-dozen people in an inflatable raft paddle past flooded buildings.]()
Read moreVolunteers from Haytap, an animal rights NGO, paddle a dinghy as they search for stray cats and dogs to rescue in the flooded town of Yusufeli on April 4, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![Two people sit on a rocky outcrop, looking down at a valley that is being flooded.]()
Read moreLocal residents look on at their town as the artificial lake rises, on April 4, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
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![A man uses an axe to tear down a small wooden structure beside a reservoir full of flooded buildings.]()
Read moreA resident attempts to retrieve materials from his home on April 4, 2023. #
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![A view of flooding filling a valley, submerging buildings]()
Read moreA view of the growing reservoir on April 4, 2023 #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![A person holds up one arm while looking into a valley that is being flooded.]()
Read moreA resident gestures while looking at his flooded town below, on April 4, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
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![An aerial view of a flooded valley and a tall, under-construction road bridge]()
Read moreAn aerial view of the slowly disappearing village of Yusufeli, and the piers of an under-construction road bridge, on April 4, 2023. Lines of new housing, built for displaced residents, can be seen at upper left. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![Buildings and the top of a minaret sit in the rising waters of a reservoir.]()
Read moreBuildings and the top of a minaret sit in the rising waters of a reservoir in northeastern Turkey on April 5, 2022. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![A person sits on the stoop of a flooded building.]()
Read moreA resident returned to her flooded home to attempt to retrieve belongings on April 5, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
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![Floating debris and flooded buildings in the rising water of a reservoir]()
Read moreFloating debris and flooded buildings in the rising water of a reservoir behind the new Yusufeli Dam on April 5, 2023 #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![A person holds a ladder atop a partially flooded building.]()
Read moreA resident attempts to retrieve items from his home before it is further submerged, on April 5, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
![Two people on a rocky ridge look down into a valley that is flooding.]()
Read moreResidents watch from a ridge as Yusufeli is slowly submerged on April 4, 2023. #
Yasin Akgul / AFP / Getty -
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