Illegal mining ravages Johannesburg neighbourhoods

What the report says

France24 Africa reported on the damage illegal mining is causing in a Johannesburg neighbourhood, where some homes are said to be at risk of collapse. The report focuses on so-called Zama Zamas, a term used in South Africa for illegal miners, and says roughly 34,000 are believed to be operating in the country in search of gold and chromium.

According to the article, the underground digging is hollowing out the ground beneath residential areas. That instability is contributing not only to structural damage and possible building failures, but also to frequent electricity outages in affected places. The story links the mining activity directly to visible infrastructure strain in Johannesburg.

The piece places the problem within a wider South African context, where illegal mining has become a persistent issue tied to abandoned or informal underground workings. As a general background point, such activity can be difficult to police because it often occurs in old mine shafts and remote tunnels, though the article itself mainly emphasizes the local impact on neighbourhood safety and services.

The report is dated 2 September 2026 and includes video coverage by Emily Boyle. It underscores how illegal extraction can create public safety risks well beyond the mine sites themselves, affecting homes, power supply and urban stability.