In the wake of sudden government shutdowns, the Bushmen are forced back into their mine; while Dan and Renee work overtime into the night, Renee is almost buried alive.
With water running critically low at their only wash dam, the Cheals work double-time to restore a second agitator; Mark I'Anson and Paul Coon get boxed in during their mission to clear nine meters of overburden at their new Servo claim.
The misfits are forced to work through the night, betting everything on untested DIY contraptions to meet a colossal rainbow matrix order; the Cheals' million-dollar operation is sent into a tailspin after Oscar drops the bombshell of his departure.
The Blacklighters face off against each other. Mark's inexperience with the dozer proves too much for Paul. Slim Pickings are forced to relocate their entire wash plant in the rush to fulfil a high-stakes order for an international buyer.
The Bushmen risk their lives 12 meters underground to free their stranded digger; on the eve of the famous Lightning Ridge Opal Festival, the Misfits struggle to treat almost 350 pounds of matrix opal, forcing Cody to cook up a miracle.
The Mooka Boys' hopes of a season-saving pocket of black opal are decimated by a busted starter motor on their dozer; Oscar sends the Cheals on a critical mission to unearth a rare green-orange gemstone for a potential buyer.
The Bushmen scramble to dig to a newly drilled emergency shaft, before they can resume mining; as the mercury soars, the Mooka Boys embark on a mission to crane a vital DIY shelter across the Lunatic Opal Field.
Mining alone and desperate for cash, Dan Measey gambles on new but unproven opal-detecting AI technology; locked in the grip of a relentless drought, Slim Pickings are forced to relocate their mining operation in desperate search of water.
After sinking a new shaft to save their backs, the Bushmen are stonewalled by impenetrable rock; the Mooka Boys are finally ready to tunnel toward black opal glory, until their last working machine suffers a catastrophic breakdown.
When Mark is hospitalized after a mining accident, Paul and John must work overtime on two separate claims to scrape together enough opal to survive the week.
Lee and Roger attempt to find enough opal to purchase a water-saving trommel; the Cheals go into overdrive as they hit a massive pocket of plate-sized opal in their open-cut mine; brutal temperatures cripple Cozza with severe heat stroke.
Cody's eagerness to prove himself becomes a liability as he gets trapped down a mine shaft; just as they're making progress at their crumbling, fault-riddled mine, The Bushmen are blindsided by a digger failure.
The Misfits struggle to find an opal king stone in time to fulfill a bespoke pendant order for an interstate buyer; Mark Bressan and Chris Cheal battle to fix their downed excavator as encroaching wet weather attracts ratters to their exposed mine.
Slim Pickings' efforts to mine their claim are derailed by a slipped excavator track and busted wash plant motor belt; the Blacklighters face off against big rain and even bigger egos as they scrounge for any last opal at their Land of Promise claim.
Sam smashes valuable opal with a jackhammer in the Bushmen's mine; Rod and Les make a wager that will force the loser to wear one of Sam's pink shirts in public.
The Cheals' dreams of expanding their business, Opal Empire are crushed by the reality of juggling two mines; the Misfits are reunited after Issy and Joe's return; Slim Pickings' Lee Hobden takes a gamble on mystery opal dirt.
Chris suffers a spider bite, forcing Oscar and Luca to take up the mining mantle; Lee from Slim Pickings battles dangerous shaft-riddled ground on a quad bike; a thirty-thousand-dollar mechanical failure brings Dan and Renee's enterprise to a halt.
The Blacklighters get hit with a double dose of disaster, busting their loader's brakes and the excavator's hydraulic arm; the Bushmen get blindsided by a government decision to shut down thousands of opal claims across New South Wales.
Mooka Boys brothers Matt and Cozza topple their excavator while attempting to reach a new mine on a treacherous opal field; The Blacklighters are almost buried alive while mining opal in unstable tunnels.
A busted dirt hauling bogger bucket threatens the Cheals' ambitions for mammoth back-to-back opal hauls; the Opal Whisperers partnership with veteran miner Uwe ends abruptly; Angel attempts her first opal sale at the Lightning Ridge Opal Festival.
The broke Bushmen are forced to trade opal to get a shaft drilled on a new claim; the Mooka Boys attempt to revive a dump truck and their opal processing plant with disastrous results; the Digi Diggers get lost exploring a terrifying abandoned mine.
The Digi Diggers get their solar plant installed, but the power hungry mine triggers a total system shutdown; Lisa jeopardizes a sale with a bespoke jeweler designer; Rod goes toe to toe with ratters who stole opal and equipment from their mine.
A vicious storm threatens to end the Misfits' season early; Issy attempts a new black-lighting technique to impress Opal Joe; the Digi Diggers mine is flooded, forcing the pair to scour the Outback for a new claim.
The Blacklighters must work a new claim using an ancient opal processing plant; the Misfits discover they're losing precious opal, so they attempt a night dig with an excavator and ultraviolet blacklights.
The Bushmen's homemade hoist and bucket fail; Rod is forced to down tools with busted ribs; Sofia and Isaac from "The Opal Whisperers" get trapped at the bottom of their open cut mine in sweltering temperatures.
Isaac from the Opal Whisperers works an abandoned, dangerous mine and partners up with a veteran Yowah miner; the Mooka Boys are confronted by an irate miner as they peg a claim too close to his mine.
The Bushmen's drill rig loses a vital pin, forcing 74-year-old Les to undertake emergency repairs four meters in the air; the Digi Diggers flooded mine wall collapses as Josiah and Lisa attempt a new method of extracting Yowah nuts.
The Bushmen struggle to locate the source of water flooding their mine; the Misfits are forced to work Issy's mine, Honey Hole, as they wait for bulldozer repairs; the Blacklighters are forced to help a fellow miner on a dangerous night dig.
Sweltering temperatures and a waterlogged mine threaten to unravel The Digi Diggers' season-long dream; the Cheals' starter motor fails on their wash plant as they race to process the last opal dirt for the season.
The Bushmen bring in an explosives expert to blast through the toughest rock in Grawin; plus, a brand-new team brings cutting edge technology to the opal fields.
The Opal Whisperers work underground together for the first time on a legendary claim; the Mooka Boys are forced to work Leif's late father's abandoned mine.
The Digi Diggers, Josiah and Lisa, need to explore new ground after mining opal too brittle to sell; they discover their entire claim is at risk of being flooded.
The Opal Whispers are forced to leave behind a rich opal seam in a mine on the verge of collapse; the Cheals are cut off from their mine by crippling floods.
Gale force winds threaten the Digi Diggers' dreams of an eco-mine; the Bushmen discover dangerous old workings while clearing out their new mine.
The Mooka Boys may lose a potential investor due to their little mining progress; disaster strikes for the Opal Whisperers when Sofia's hoist fails.
The Blacklighters discover opalised sea creatures in an ancient seabed; the Cheals close in on their biggest opal haul ever, but all is not as it seems.
The Bushmen's new rookie rushes into a deadly no-go zone while the Cheals attempt to revive their season; the Mooka Boys try a new technique to expose opal in colorless rock.
A bomb expert comes in to blast impenetrable rock for the Bishop; the Cheals race to move a rock-extracting blower before heat damages their machine and the Misfits battle avalanches and dust storms.
Handwritten clues left by Leif's late father help the Mooka Boys hunt for an abandoned mine; the Blacklighters battle choking dust on their dry claim and the Tarantos make emergency repairs on their bulldozer.
Greg explores the hidden tunnels on his massive claim searching for white opal; the Tarantos' excavator springs a leak and the Blacklighters look for a new house.
The Bushmen drill with a 50-year-old exploration rig for the first time and the Mooka Boys hunt for treasure in a scorpion-riddled mine; the Cheals close in on a promising pocket.
The Young Guns face dangerous roads; impenetrable mine walls and faulty electronics spark a fire in the Opal Whisperers' headquarters; the Blacklighters risk losing their plan as their generator dies.
The Bushmen find a hidden shaft by falling into it and the Blacklighters brand-new investment is dead in the water; a busted jackhammer forces JC and the Young Guns to make emergency repairs halfway down the mine shaft.
The Bushmen are dismayed after taking over their new recruit's mine and finding it is both treacherous and light on opal; the Bishop turns to explosive means to move a wall; the Misfits work underground for the first time.
Scott and the Bishop cause an avalanche while trying to secure a wall; the Mooka boys' bobcat suffers a critical failure; the Blacklighters dig into a rich and dangerous abandoned mine.
The Young Guns' hopes of breaking their drought get shattered after they accidentally smash a valuable gemstone; the Bishop loses Scotty underground; the Tarantos' hopes of exposing a rare opal pocket fall in jeopardy.
A massive lightning storm forces the Young Guns to work on a series of flooded dirt roads; the Bushmen risk it all in a dangerous area vandalized by opal thieves; the Blacklighters take their chances with night mining.
The Young Guns face an uncertain future when James gets injured; the Bushmen find opal on the boundary of their mine, and rain slows down the Cheals.
Rory and Oscar are forced to operate their dad's drill rig for the first time; the Tarantos are struck down by sickness, and the Bushmen build a dangerous mine roof.
JC returns to White Cliffs after his accident while Blacklight Xavier misses a massive pocket of opal passing through the noodling machine; the Tunnel Rats start their season in a vermin-infested mine.
The Tarantos' excavator grinds to a halt at the bottom of their mine. The Cheals also face machinery failure as Rory busts their digger underground. The Bushmen's roof is on the edge of collapse.
The Misfits give it all they've got to prove their worth in the mine fields of South Australia. The Bishop loses his prized claim to competitors while the Tunnel Rats risk electrocution while operating their digger.
Joe and Tash fossick on the surface with hand tools after the Tarantos fails to bring up any color; the Opal Whisperers try constructing a noodler from scrap material while the Misfits narrowly avoid an avalanche.