KwaMashu has been labelled as the most unsafe area in Durban, between 2017 and 2018. This has been revealed by the eThekwini Municipality, in its Municipal Services and Living Conditions survey.
Umlazi came in a close second, with the Durban CBD being the third area in which residents felt most unsafe. The aim of the survey is to supply municipal decision-makers with data related to residents’ perceptions of their living conditions.
Forty-two areas in and around Durban were surveyed. Those working and living in the Durban CBD had this to say.
” I do not feel safe at all in KwaMashu and here in town, there’s really a lot of crime here. You can’t even go around carrying your phone. People are basically used to living in fear in town, It’s hard to even walk through with your family because you have to keep watching your family’s back,” said one resident.
“I live in Phoenix – break-in’s are really bad. If I had, I will obviously leave my phone, jewelry back and then go into town because you never know when someone may approach you and from there ask for directions and actually rob you in the process. Potentially any area that you go to is basically unsafe, if you park your car here, guys are just going to break in. I don’t feel safe,” added another one.
