Tent City empties
Published in The Perth Voice, January 21, 2021
THE charred remains of Tent City in East Perth are now almost completely uninhabited.
After months of campaigning for their right to shelter, 44 rough sleepers from Tent City have been assisted into accommodation since Christmas Eve.
Wungening Aboriginal Cooperation worked with the Department of Communities to get the latest tranche of 11 people in the Perth City Apartment Hotel.
Hoteliers had not been paid since January 1, but Communities said it had been resolved following meetings with Wungening on January 14 and 19.
“Communities met with Wungening on Tuesday afternoon, with Wungening committing to extend their support of the 11 adults currently staying at the hotel, until 31 January,” a Communities spokesperson said.
The funding is through a Lotterywest grant.
Six people still remain in the camp, which caught alight on January 6 and January 8 in what the Department of Fire and Emergency Services said was an “accidental rubbish fire”.
“It just means it was probably caused by a human, but not on purpose‚“ DFES said.
“Communities continues to work with its community service partners to support the six people who remain at the site,” a department spokesperson said.
Photo by Erin Guy