Strabane mum pleads for new home after ceiling collapse

A STRABANE woman at the centre of a long-running row with the Housing Executive is pleading for permanent rehousing after her kitchen ceiling collapsed at the weekend.

Keelie Porter, who lives on Townsend Street with her two children, said she has battled for months to have leaks resolved in her upstairs bathroom. The persistent problem caused her kitchen ceiling to bulge before finally giving way during heavy rainfall on Saturday morning.

“It was on Saturday morning and all three of us were in the house. I was upstairs and, all of a sudden, heard this almighty crash,” Ms Porter recalled. “I came down to see the kitchen ceiling had collapsed with plaster everywhere. With the rain, all the leaks have become more frequent and much worse. It has now gotten to the stage where I can’t even make food.”

The Housing Executive had been due to remove the bath and sink two weeks earlier to allow repairs, but Ms Porter initially refused entry, pointing out that she and her children would have been left without a toilet or washing facilities. She only agreed to let contractors in once she secured access to amenities at a nearby community centre, thanks to arrangements made by local community worker Ivan Barr.

“The contractors are currently in my house fixing the bathroom but that still leaves me with a hole in the kitchen, which I informed the Executive of on Monday,” she said. “The kids started school this week so that’s some help but, outside of that, we’re forced to use facilities at a local community centre and it’s a huge strain. I would like to thank Ivan Barr for making the community centre available to me and my children at this difficult time.”

Ms Porter insists that even if the repairs are completed, she still needs to be permanently rehoused. She also claims she knows of several houses in Strabane that could provide temporary accommodation.

The Housing Executive has rejected her assertion, saying all single-let properties in the town are currently occupied. In a statement, a spokesperson said, “An agreement was made with the tenant and contractors to have the work carried out within a specified timeframe, so no decant is necessary. A transfer application has been received, and the tenant has been placed on the waiting list for a three-bedroom property. Further information is to be provided by the tenant which will allow our staff to allocate suitable housing points…

“As we have previously stated, the contractor has made additional staff available to ensure the work is carried out as promptly as possible.”