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The national Institute for Communicable Diseases confirmed a first COVID19 patient on the 05 March 2020, which influenced the South African government (10 days later) to declare a National Disaster, as per Section 27(2) of the Disaster Management Act of 2002. This study is triggered by the scant and confusing roles and responsibilities of municipalities (including the eThekwini Municipality) in mitigating the impacts of the virus and proactively responding to the pandemic. The adverse effects of the pandemic to the vulnerable and impoverished communities and the ineffectiveness of the interventions and initiatives to prevent and mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 in this municipality during the lockdown period, also have influenced this study. This article aspires to dissect the existing prevention, preparedness, and mitigating response and recovery strategies in minimizing the impacts of COVID-19 to the vulnerable communities of eThekwini Municipality, and to analyse the effectiveness of municipal enforcement agencies, operations, institutional arrangements and governance, as well as the efficiency of the response plans to the pandemic. The direct relationship between eThekwini municipality and its Disaster Management Centre is emphasised throughout. Design and research methodology: This paper followed an ethnographic participant observation approach design and research methodology where researchers’ experiences and understanding of the vulnerable groups living in the informal settlements and their susceptibility to the COVID-19 pandemic were strategically reflected upon. In addition, a qualitative case study was supported Evangelos A. Mantzaris & Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu 118 by a conventional content analysis through researching and coding media articles from different newspapers and official documents, and reporting on COVID-19 and its effects on vulnerable groups. This study espoused the view that the eThekwini Municipality Disaster Management Centre does not comply with certain crucial sections of the Disaster Management Act and cannot effectively, efficiently and proactively, prevent, mitigate and respond to the coronavirus and its effects. The centre faces a shortage of staff and lacks a qualified workforce capable of achieving the objectives of the centre, a reality that makes them unfit to holistically coordinate the municipal programmes in responding to the slow killer virus. The mass evictions of the people living in the informal settlements by the municipal enforcement agents during the strictly regulated lock-down period, suggest that the municipality is not interested in the health and safety of their residents. This article has a potential impact on the government and its agencies’ officials, as it will identify a number of bottlenecks and provide suggestions on their contingency plans in minimizing the impacts of the pandemic. In identifying current research hotspots in the COVID-19 discourse, given the paucity of published data on the application of the disaster management principles, this study will make a valuable contribution.

Dissecting Disaster Responses during COVID-19: An eThekwini Municipality Experience