“Drowning in trauma”: mental health impacts of floods in overpopulated informal settlements in South Africa

Abstract

Mental health issues in South Africa have been considered a neglected subject, particularly those mental health issues that are caused or exacerbated by disasters. There is a lack of awareness around this issue, which falls within the category of climate-induced disaster. To fill this gap, this study assessed the impacts of recurring floods on the mental health of Setswetla informal settlement residents in Johannesburg, South Africa and a total of 100 adult residents participated in the study. The study adopted a quantitative research approach and used a structured questionnaire to gather data in 2024. The data was analysed using the R statistical software package. The study applied multinomial logistic Regression, a generalised linear model, and a logistic regression model to assess vicarious traumatization, compassion, and post-traumatic stress disorder as mental health measures to assess the impacts of these recurring floods on the study community. Our results showed that participants who actively maintain boundaries and are not overly pre-occupied are at lower risk of vicarious traumatization, implying that preoccupation and maintaining boundaries play a critical role in reducing vicarious traumatization risk. Compassionate fatigue was a crucial issue among respondents in flood-affected areas, highlighting the severe psychological and physical toll of recurring floods on respondents as predictors of compassionate fatigue. The findings on PTSD suggest that recurring floods act as a psychological trigger, causing affected individuals to relive distressing experiences and struggle with emotional regulation. This study highlights and concludes that individuals in flood-prone communities are particularly vulnerable to PTSD symptoms related to re-experiencing trauma and emotional numbing.