Fortune or death may await them at the end of this dark tunnel supported by a few planks. Ten meters underground – an arid and inhospitable land – thousands of miners stake their lives every day to discover the blue stone that could lift them out of poverty. We returned to Ilakaka, 40,000 inhabitants, a sapphire eldorado located in the south of Madagascar. Twelve years ago, Ilakaka looked like a slum in a bad Far West setting. The miners spent their meager fortune on girls and alcohol. Foreign buyers took out their wads of notes only under armed escort. Ferdinand, 10 years old, had improvised trading in precious stones. He had introduced us to his girlfriend, Olga, 12 years old. Olga sold her charms in the bars of Ilakaka. What have they become ? Did they make a fortune? What is life like today in this Far West, twelve years after the start of the blue gold rush?