Plus: Gold fever hits settlement in South Africa ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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| | | Hello. We have the latest on the avalanche that killed eight people in California's Lake Tahoe region. One remaining missing person is presumed dead amid extreme weather conditions. In South Africa, Nomsa Maseko reports on a gold fever sparked by a few nuggets discovered in a cattle pen. Finally, we share a tip to get into Oxford - for a night or two. | | | | | | |
| TOP OF THE AGENDA | | Eight of nine missing skiers found dead in California | | |  | | The avalanche was a 'football field in length', an official said. Credit: Reuters | | Eight people have been found dead at the scene of an avalanche in California's Lake Tahoe region, with one missing person presumed dead, and six others saved by local search-and-rescue teams. The mission is moving its focus "from rescue to recovery", Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said in a press conference. She added that "extreme weather conditions" have forced about 50 rescue workers to move at a "slow and steady pace" as the area is still high danger for an avalanche. The group of 15 people, including four guides, was on its third and last day of a tour in the Castle Peak area. | | | | | | | | |
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| | | Guthrie 'being held close to her home', Sheriff believes | | Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said he believed Nancy Guthrie was being held somewhere close to her home in Arizona. | | Watch the interview > | | | Multiple arrests over French nationalist killing | | French authorities have detained two more people over the death of a far-right activist, putting pressure on the country's far-left. | | Read more > | | | | Iran security official appears to fire on crowd | | Crowds of mourners appear to have been fired on by a security official at a cemetery in the west of Iran. | | More on the gatherings > | | | | | | |
| NEWS FROM THE UK | | | - Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor: The Met Police has begun "initial inquiries" relating to protection officers previously assigned to the former prince.
| - Safety concerns: Illegal skin-lightening products are being sold in butchers and food shops across the UK as well as online, a watchdog has warned.
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| | | Gold fever hits town after lucky find goes viral |  | | A gram of gold is worth about $100 (£74), more than a quarter of the South African monthly minimum wage. Credit: EPA | | Springs was once a booming gold town, but its mines were closed several years ago because the extreme depth of the shafts made operations uneconomical. But after a resident claimed to have found several nuggets, a gold rush has gripped the town. | | | | | | Nomsa Maseko with Richard Kagoe and Natasha Booty | | | | | | Dozens of people have now descended on a fenced area which was used as an enclosure for cattle. Armed with pickaxes and shovels, they have been digging up into the soil, hoping to strike it rich. "We know this is illegal. We want the government to give us mining permits so we can work and pay tax," one man, who did not want to be named, told the BBC.
Some said that they have been able to find gold. "This is the only hustle we know," another digger told the BBC. "It has saved many of us from being arrested for committing serious and violent crimes." At around 14:00 local time after the end of the school day, children started arriving at the site. They had gone home first to change out of their uniforms and then rushed to the cattle enclosure to help their parents dig for gold. A gram of gold is worth about $100 (£74). By contrast, the monthly minimum wage in South Africa is $368 (£270). | | | | | - Gold price: The precious metal has had a moment in the markets, with its price rising by more than a half over the past year. Here's why.
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