Joy French has lived with a hole in her home for more than a month.Photo by  Jon Hewson www.communitypix.com.au d441741
Camera IconJoy French has lived with a hole in her home for more than a month.Photo by Jon Hewson www.communitypix.com.au d441741 Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Hole in wall drama

Stuart HortonWeekend Kwinana Courier

AN 88-year-old Warnbro widow has been left housebound and awaiting repairs for nearly five weeks after a vehicle ploughed through the front of her unit.

Joy French was in her lounge talking to a cleaner about 8.20am on Thursday, July 2, when a neighbour's 4WD crashed through her bedroom wall.

Mrs French contacted the Courier on Tuesday and said her unit, owned by the State's Housing Authority, had not been fixed despite the magnitude of the damage and daily telephone calls asking for work to be done.

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"Last Thursday a carpenter came to board up the room but it took four weeks for that to happen," she said.

"Before that, I had to move everything out of my room and my sister-in-law helped me to barricade and secure the bedroom door so no one could come in at night.

"I haven't left my home in all this time because Im too scared someone will rob me.

"At night Im scared someone will get in and kill me."

To make matters worse, the accident occurred on the first anniversary of her husband's death.

"I thought it was him coming down to call me up when I heard the crash. I've aged terribly in the past three or four weeks. I've broken down a number of times because I've had enough; it's like living in ancient times," she said.

Mrs French said the Housing Authority had told her they needed three quotes from builders before work could commence and that she could have had the repairs done before now.

Housing Authority general manager of service delivery Greg Cash told the Courier that three quotes had been obtained for repairs and that work on the unit would be completed early next week.

"While the home suffered minor damage in the accident, its structural integrity was not affected," he said.

Mr Cash also said a housing officer had visited Mrs French on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the repairs and apologise.

The Courier spoke to Mrs French again on Wednesday and she said this had not actually happened, but added a repair worker was at the unit installing a new bedroom window.

"I had someone come out to check on a leak in the bathroom ceiling (on Tuesday), but no one (from the Housing Authority) has been out," she said.

"It's taken them nearly five weeks to get anything done and now I talk to the local paper and (the Housing Authority) say it'll be fixed by next week?

"It's unreal."