Paul King, who lost his job of five-years, has been sleeping in a makeshift camp in the Laragh woods for weeks, unable to secure accommodation through HAP.
King, who suffered a heart attack last Christmas morning, has been on the housing list for 13 years and has stated that his current conditions are causing untold damage to his health.
Sleeping under a plastic tarp in the woods of Laragh for weeks now, Paul has exhausted every resource availabe to him in order to get the attention of the council, who he says has largely ignored letters from his own doctor explaining the seriousness of his current situation.
Paul, who is originally from Dublin, has said that he is currently taking eight different tablets every day in order to keep his heart condition in check.
The cold and wet nights have taken a toll on Paul, who says that the plastic tarp he sleeps under only provides so much shelter from the elements. He says that the only real heat he gets day or night comes from his sleeping bag, and that even that is useless when it rains, as it has done for the past week.
Paul told Wicklow People “No one from the council has been out to see the conditions I am having to live in and it’s very hard to get any information regarding where exactly I am on the waiting list.“
“I’m not a bad person, I’m a good person, but I have been on the housing list for over 13 years.“
Paul says that he has contacted over 100 landlords but none will accept HAP (Housing Assistance Payment) and he has been left in a housing limbo for weeks.
However, in characteristically good nature, the Laragh community have come together to help Paul through his ordeal by providing him with food, water, a charging point for his phone, and clean clothes. This kindness has been the only comfort Paul has received since being made homeless.
He says that he has known many of the Laragh residents for a long time and they are like family to him.
