‘Devastated’: former chef now disabled stroke victim made homeless by massive termite discovery
A former chef and Queensland dancing champion left profoundly disabled after a series of catastrophic strokes is now facing homelessness after a massive termite infestation was uncovered in his house.
Cairns
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A former chef and dancing champion left profoundly disabled after a series of catastrophic strokes is now facing homelessness after a massive termite infestation was uncovered in his house.
Babinda man Raymond Ashby and his wife Joanne have “literally nowhere” to go once April 7 arrives because the house they own has become riddled with termites.
They are calling on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) to step in and help, but their requests so far have been rejected.
Mr Ashby, 60, who has worked with some of Australia’s best chefs and was an award-winning rock ‘n’ roll dancer, began to experience a set of strange symptoms in late 2021 including night sweats and a loss of taste.
In the following months he had several strokes which left him incontinent, unable to swallow solid foods and largely immobile.
In early 2022, he was found on the floor of his bedroom, and after being hospitalised, he was subsequently diagnosed with a rare condition called Autoimmune Cerebral Vasculitis. This caused vascular swelling throughout his body, and resulted in several large blood clots in his brain.
“This has left him with virtually no cognitive aspect,” Ms Ashby, 59, explained as she paused to gather herself and fight back tears.
“He forgets constantly and can barely speak.”
Mr Ashby has been provided with an NDIS package, with nearly $30,000 given for the couple to engage a builder to modify their bathroom at the Babinda home they bought for $120,000 in 2016.
The construction company engaged one of their labourers to demolish the existing bathroom. The labourer removed the shower, bath and toilet along with all the floorboards and roof panels.
When the company’s builder arrived the next day they noticed the termite damage inside and said this was so extensive it was not viable to continue to work on the bathroom. The termites were thought to have been inside the walls for at least 20 years.
This left the Ashbys, who were staying in supported accommodation funded by the NDIS, with a home they own but with no bathroom or toilet, nor any money to get the bathroom repaired.
An engineer came to assess their house and, in his report, said the “poor condition of the bathroom and extensive issues, the works involved to repair…are not seen as economically feasible. It is recommended that the existing structure be demolished and rebuilt”.
As a result, the NDIS declined funding to undertake further work on the bathroom.
Mr Ashby is a disability support pension recipient, and Ms Ashby is his carer. The couple do not have the money to get the house rebuilt. They want to stay in the house, but are now the verge of being stuck with literally nowhere to go.
The supported accommodation paid for by the NDIS, which was meant to provide accommodation during the bathroom modifications runs out on April 7. The couple have asked for an extension, but NDIS have declined.
“We are about to be thrown out of the street,” Ms Ashby said.
“We just signed a piece of paper asking for the NDIS to modify the bathroom, now we are homeless. Ray will likely go into hospital, I dont know where I will go and our dog Bonnie will have to be given to the pound.”
The Ashbys are not eligible for public housing or assistance from homeless agencies because they own the Babinda property.
They want the NDIS to step in to fund a solution, such as a portable bathroom or provide an extra 90 days extension to their supported accommodation. NDIS has so far declined these requests.
“There has got to be some accountability for this,” Ms Ashby said.
A spokesman from the NDIA said that it “continues to assist Raymond with the disability-related supports he requires”.
“While the Agency acknowledges the challenging circumstances Raymond is facing, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is designed to complement, not replace mainstream services the states and territories provide such as housing”.
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Originally published as ‘Devastated’: former chef now disabled stroke victim made homeless by massive termite discovery
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