In the barren mountains of southern Tunisia, at the gates of the Sahara desert, it rarely rains. When the rains do come, they can quickly turn to torrential downpours. In 1969, a flood lasted 22 days, forcing the inhabitants of the Berber village of Tamerza to abandon their homes and rebuild further down the valley.
Today, it is still possible to see the ruins of the old village along the road going from Tozeur and the large salt lake Chott El Jerid, to the mountain oasis region, near the border with Algeria. Tamerza was already inhabited in Roman times and known by the name of Ad Turres. It was a strategic center along the Limes Tripolitanus—the extreme southern border of the Empire—built to stop raids by the desert tribes.
The old abandoned village offers spectacular views of the surrounding Atlas mountains, which appeared in some scenes of the Oscar-winning film The English Patient. A desert oasis sits in the backdrop of the long abandoned settlement. Among the ruins of the village, visitors can see a mosque and the tomb of a local saint, the marabout Sidi Dar Ben Dahar.