‘We’re hungry, there are no jobs’: a South African township’s desperate gold rush

‘We’re hungry, there are no jobs’: a South African township’s desperate gold rush A rumour on social media brought dozens of fortune seekers to a field on the outskirts of mining town Springs I n a township 30 miles east of Johannesburg, a mechanical digger filled in holes in the dark brown earth, bringing to an end a brief but intense gold rush that saw dozens of fortune seekers descend on what was once a cattle field. Less than two weeks ago, a rumour spread like wildfire on social media: someone had found gold while digging a hole for a fence post in a field on the edge of Gugulethu, an informal settlement of dirt roads and metal shacks on the outskirts of mining town Springs. Many of Gugulethu’s jobless residents got to work digging. Prospectors also came from hundreds of miles away, from Limpopo province to the north and the city of Rustenberg to the north-west, said local councillor Dean Stone. By Wednesday 18 February, authorities from the wider Ekurhuleni municipality had clamped down on what was deemed to be illegal mining. Three people were arrested, mining equipment was confiscated and diggers and dumper trucks were brought in to fill the trenches. “Reports of gold being discovered remain unverified and are currently speculative,” the City of Ekurhuleni said in social media posts . The frenzy contains echoes of the creation of Johannesburg, which mushroomed out of farmland when gold was discovered in 1886 and is now home to more than 6.5 million people. Springs was founded in 1904 after gold was struck there in 1899 and its centre is filled with faded art deco buildings that recall its prosperous past. The lure of gold has become brighter again in the last year, with the price soaring above $5,000 (£3,710) an ounce as investors flocked to “safe haven” assets amid market volatility triggered by US president Donald Trump’s tariffs. The short, sharp gold rush in Gugulethu, which has a population of about 11,500, also reflects the desperation of many South Af...