UPDATE: The 'diamonds' in Ladysmith turn out to be quartz stones

Confirmation has been received from a technical team after tests were conducted by a team of geologists. 

"The tests conducted conclusively reveals that the stones discovered in the area are not diamonds as some had hoped,' said KwaZulu-Natal Economic Development MEC Ravi Pillay.

He concluded that it has rather been quartz crystals that they found which are commonly associated with the Karoo supergroup. They are yet to determine the value of the stones.

We have been following this interesting story of the "diamond rush" in the KwaHlatini village in Ladysmith, KZN.

Have a look at how it's been unfolding to this point:

Images and videos have been circulating on social media where residents of KwaHlatini and neighbouring villages are seen digging for 'diamonds' and some celebrating their 'new wealth' as a result. 

Here are some pictures of what is believed to be 'diamonds'. Some argue that these are simply quartz stones, though.

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government is among those to have raised concerns about illegal mining activity in the area.

According to News24, provincial government spokesperson, Lennox Mabaso, on Sunday said: “As soon as it was notified of this, the provincial government tasked the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs to refer the matter to the national Department of Minerals and Energy as the relevant department which deals with such.”

The Department of Minerals and Energy (DMRE) has promised to send teams to the site. These teams include the department’s enforcement and compliance unit for inspection of the site.

READ MORE: South African miner finds five rare blue diamonds

The second team is said to include officials from the Council for Geoscience and the Council for Mineral Technology, Mintek.

It is reported that the Mintek and GCS teams will include a geologist and will focus on establishing what exactly the stone is. 

We shared this story on a Facebook post and some of the responses have been hilarious...

This was a comment from one of the posts about the diamonds: 

KZN Premier, Sihle Zikalala shared that he was worried that if not brought under control the situation could result in chaos and a possible stampede.

“We call for order and calm and urge all those involved to cease their operations and vacate the site so as to allow the DMRE to conduct a proper inspection of the site and of what has been discovered there.”

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His main concern is also the fact that COVID-19 regulations are broken as there are many people gathered in one spot. 

"It is also very concerning that in the wake of a looming third wave we have so many people gathered in one spot, not maintaining social distancing and also not wearing masks. This could prove to be a super-spreader and might put at risk many people including those who are not part of the mining,” he said.

We now wait in suspense to find out if people have truly scored their fortune in this luck 'diamond' discovery. 

According to Journalist Nomsa Maseko's Twitter she visited the site at which the 'diamonds' are being dug in the KwaHlatini village. She shared pictures on her Twitter page indicating smaller looking stones. 

She also shared this interesting fact: 

Another Twitter user shares ways in which one can test whether or not the stone is a diamond: 

Incoming new information states that a team of geologists from the government has collected samples in order to determine whether the material is diamond or not. They expect conclusive results before mid-July.

And while South Africa might be the world’s sixth-largest producer of diamonds, manufacturing 7.2 million carats in 2019; our neighbours in Botswana have emerged with the 3rd biggest diamond in the world. 

Most people wait in anticipation for the confirmation from a credible geologist who has tested one of the diamonds from KwaHlatini. There is speculation that should they be real, it is going to create conflict between the villagers and the the government.