Laura Western’s two children have been waking up with nosebleeds and persistent coughs in their public housing home for four years.
Her Balga property is covered in mould spores and she first reported the fungus’ appearance in her laundry in 2022.
“It’s just growing and growing,” she said.
“When we get sick, we just wheeze. I get breathless just walking [the kids] to school … my son wakes up with nosebleeds. He thinks that’s normal, but it’s not normal.”
For the last four years, Western and her children have endured the illnesses that come with living in the Balga property.
In January, the department sent her a letter saying the home was “habitable” while it tried to organise someone to clean up the mould.
However, it’s an assessment Laura claims is dead wrong.
Western has recently been in contact with the Department of Housing and Works about getting the mould assessed and fixed once and for all.
However, she has one condition to the work being done.
Western has repeatedly asked the department for somewhere to stay while the mould work is being done, but had received no reply to her request.
Instead, she received legal notices forcing her to vacate the property while the maintenance workers come through.
The Department of Housing and Works said it had repeatedly sent contractors to fix the mould in the last few months, but Western had refused to let them in.
A department spokesperson said the work they intended to carry out would be completed “within a day”, and it should be safe to re-enter the property on the same evening.
“The department have advised Ms Western that she may choose to remain away from the property for the day to allow access and return once works are completed and the property is secure,” they said.
“The work zone will be isolated and controlled to prevent contamination of other areas as per the requirements that the licensed contractor must perform to remove [asbestos containing material].
“The department has also provided Ms Western with information on relevant Australian Work Health and Safety laws to address her concerns.
“Works cannot be undertaken if contractors cannot gain access to the property.”
But Western said she continued to refuse entry until her demands for an alternative place to stay were met.
“It’s us it puts at risk,” she said.
Western said the last time the department did work at the property, the whole back end of her house was left open and accessible for days at a time.
Western is a domestic violence victim whose perpetrator knows her address, and had been unable to sleep when she knew an intruder could easily walk into her home.
She said the presence of asbestos was particularly concerning for her two young children, who were already dealing with complex respiratory issues due to the ongoing presence of mould in the house.
Western believes any disruption during the work to either the asbestos or the mould could further compromise their damaged immune systems.
Mould experts told this masthead the work needed to get rid of the mould would be “penetrative”, and require extensive effort to eradicate the infestation entirely.
Two contractors said Western’s situation was symptomatic of how the Department of Housing and Works deals with mould in public housing.
“My personal belief is that if the state government and departments were to take accountability and responsibility for the mould issues in properties under their direct control – hospitals, housing, offices – then the financial liabilities would be crippling,” one contractor said.
“[I’m] afraid most people keep their heads under the firing line – and so what you’ve seen in Balga continues and nothing changes.
“[It] sounds a bit dramatic, but ultimately for those trapped in these situations – it’s very sad.
“The companies that have the contracts for mould in public housing are not all bad, but they are dictated to follow WA advice.”
This masthead has seen correspondence from Western to the department requesting a place to stay while the work was carried out, to no response.
Instead, a letter from the department was sent to Western on January 8 this year, claiming “the property remained habitable in the interim”. The mother-of-two is now facing eviction if she does not let workers into the property by mid-March to address the mould.
However, Western believes it should never have gotten this far.
She said both her children were now forced to use asthma puffers and had experienced ongoing respiratory issues.
She emphasised it had been four years since she first pointed out the mould to the department.
“I reported this in 2022 … why has it taken so long? Why didn’t you do it before we moved in? It’s going to affect our health in the long run,” she said.