JESSICA KNIGHT felt very proud when a friend bought her a small wooden house so that she could have somewhere to call home.
But the house is so desperately in need of repairs that it has become uninhabitable.
The 63-year-old and her 43-year-old niece, Paula Sealy, are forced to “make do”, even though the house is in a dilapidated state. Whenever it rains, the interior gets soaked.
Knight, whose friend bought the Henry’s Lane, St Michael house for her for $3 500, said about a year ago she contacted the Urban Development Commission (UDC) and asked for assistance in repairing it.
“They came three times and took photographs and I ain’t hear a thing from them since,” she said.
An official at the UDC also told her that the one-bedroom house was not suitable for habitation, Knight said.
Her niece pointed out that whenever it rained she had to run out of the bedroom because it got soaked. Furthermore, her two children, who she described as “slow learners”, could not live with her because of the conditions.
“We keep calling Urban. I call up to today but I ain’t hear nothing,” said Knight, who also confirmed that they were receiving welfare assistance.
There is a huge hole in the living room which is covered with a piece of wood. Knight and Sealy said they have to walk gingerly in the house lest the floor falls in.
The only other room – a dining-room/kitchen – is also in a bad state. The ceiling is also collapsing.
The two occupants also use an outdoor shower and toilet.
Calls to Georgia Broome of the administration department at UDC were not immediately returned.
