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This study aims to identify the mechanisms influencing the level of understanding of community resilience in a vulnerable community and to contribute to the understanding of community resilience to disaster risk. The Western Cape is a dynamic province that is disaster-prone, particularly the vulnerable urban communities in and around its environs. Such communities are more vulnerable to wildfire, flooding, pandemic, natural and human-made hazards because of poverty and, consequently, poor living conditions such as overcrowding and non-understanding of community resilience. The inability of these communities to understand community resilience and withstand adversities affects the sustainability of initiatives to develop them.

This research study proposes that communities in informal settlements are affected by disasters and the risks are high. Therefore, people need to know and understand CR to be able to build it within themselves or their communities, in the context of withstanding DR. The result of this article showed that the nine variables and the variable ‘public education and awareness’ are important ways for understanding and improving the level of understanding of CR in the vulnerable community in South Africa. The study also gives an insight into the potentials of the Phola Park community towards being a resilient community. However, the community still has some valuable understanding or knowledge that still needs proper guidance and help from external bodies and the government sector.