It is located on the Klip River in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa upstream of the town of Ladysmith.
Site preparation began in 1994, was completed in 1997 and serves mainly as a flood attenuation and control dam to reduce flooding in the town of Ladysmith.
The town is located in a loop of the Klip River and was established there primarily for defense reasons in 1847 by Boers before being annexed by the British.
The outlet at the base of the dam is uncontrolled with a maximum flow capacity of 400 m3s−1.
This article about a dam or floodgate in South Africa is a stub.