Residents and their families were concerned about the potential for a coronavirus outbreak in Melbourne's high-density public housing towers as far back as March.
A former resident of the Flemington public housing estate in Melbourne emailed the Department of Health and Human Services in March asking what was being done to prevent the spread of coronavirus through the towers.
Meanwhile, approximately 3,000 residents have been prevented from leaving their buildings for any reason for at least five days since Saturday, relying on government authorities and volunteers for food, medication, and other supplies.
“I was worried because people are in such close proximity to each other … so I wanted to know if they had a management plan,” Ms Hassab told SBS News. “But obviously they couldn’t provide that.”How Australians are mobilising to support Melbourne's locked-down public housing residentsA DHHS spokesperson told SBS News information about the virus had been provided to all public housing estates from the beginning of the pandemic, including in languages other than English.
A sign is seen on a window at one of the public housing towers on Racecourse Road in Flemington, Melbourne.In a letter to health authorities on Monday, the Melbourne Public Tenants Association, on behalf of residents of the nine buildings, described the food deliveries as “at best, questionable pre-packaged meat-like food items that does not look suitable for human consumption”.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Thousands march in peaceful Black Lives Matter rallies in Sydney, NewcastleThousands of people have gathered in New South Wales for peaceful Black Lives Matter rallies, calling for racial equality and action against Indigenous deaths in custody.
Read more »
After three simple words, I knew I had to marry this womanI kissed her then, realising no American woman I knew would ever have said that. Paris was my kind of town, cold and cynical, and Anaïs is as Parisian as they get.
Read more »
Woman killed after cat licked herA grandmother spent nine days in a coma before dying after her pet cat licked her, prompting a warning to other owners.
Read more »
Report finds former Melbourne lord mayor Robert Doyle 'inappropriately' touched womanA report commissioned by the Melbourne City Council has found former lord mayor Robert Doyle behaved in a 'sexually inappropriate way' at a work function in 2016.
Read more »
Woman who gave birth at age 14 to stepfather's child in toilet cubicle sentenced for infanticideA woman who gave birth in secret in a toilet cubicle as a 14-year-old after years of sexual abuse by her stepfather is sentenced for killing her baby by stuffing toilet paper in his mouth in attempt to keep him quiet.
Read more »
Woman ‘slim-shamed just like Adele’When Georgi Phipps lost 63kg, she was excited to share her transformation with family and friends, but it wasn’t the reaction she hoped for.
Read more »