Chaos, stress as families are ‘boxed in’

Locked in the three-bedroom home he shares with his parents and six siblings, Yaqub Hashi, 17, could hear his neighbours cry out during the night.

Residents gather at a fire escape of a public housing tower in Flemington, Melbourne, on Monday. Picture: David Crosling

Locked in the three-bedroom home he shares with his parents and six siblings, Yaqub Hashi, 17, could hear his neighbours cry out during the night.

The child of Somali refugees, he has lived his whole life in a public housing tower in North Melbourne that is one of nine ordered into hard lockdown by the Victorian government.

On Monday, Yaqub said his family was beginning to feel squeezed inside their small apartments after two days of detention.

“It’s very stressful, very confusing … It’s jammed up in here, there’s a lot of families in here,” he said. “We feel very boxed in.”

More than 3000 residents are unable to leave their homes at all for at least another three days, in the most severe measures implemented to combat the spread of the coronavirus outside of China. The entrapped residents are a mix of refugees from countries such as Somalia and Ethiopia as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, many with large families sharing small apartments.

At the North Melbourne estate, a father lifted up his small children so they could glimpse the outside world through a window.

From a window facing Alfred Street, a woman wearing a yellow hijab held a sign asking for help for her brother’s child with special needs.

Across the road, residents living in million-dollar cottage-style houses came and went throughout the day.

Daniel Andrews announced the hard lockdown on Saturday afternoon and Yaqub said he and a friend tried to go to Woolworths to purchase supplies before the Victorian Premier finished the announcement.

“The police were already there while Daniel Andrews was speaking,” he said. “They said: ‘We don’t know what’s going on right now, we only have one order and it’s to keep you guys at home.’ ”

Residents look out from the North Melbourne estate. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Unable to shop for their own groceries, residents posted images on social media of half-frozen curries in plastic bags that had been left on their doorsteps.

One tower resident and Twitter user, Amr Osman, began tweeting under the hashtag #9Towers.

“Ok, so first they lock us down with no warning and don’t let us get essentials … then they bring 25-30 boxes of food which have wheat bix, 3 tuna cans, packet of pasta, tomato paste … no milk no bread,” he said.

He also shared videos, saying: “The government hasn’t provided us with shit they hv literally left single mums with 4-5 little baby’s with no baby formula.”

The government hasn’t provided us with shit they hv literally left single mums with 4-5 little baby’s with no baby formula no milk and no bread I’m literally nearly in tears from the amount of mother me and the boys distributed food to that where crying when we gave them food pic.twitter.com/3uasQhz7WC

— amr osman (@amore___31) July 5, 2020

On Monday, a Foodbank truck arrived at the North Melbourne estate while Coles announced it was working with the state government to distribute 2000 boxes of food to the towers.

Yaqub said there was a deep sense of unease within the towers. “Last night there were a lot of people screaming: ‘Let us out, let us out,’ ” he said. “My neighbour is elderly, I’m really concerned about him but we can’t even go to him to check.”

Workers inside the towers have told The Australian of chaotic scenes leaving residents confused and afraid, with few coming forward to be tested for the coronavirus.

People from the 120 building where not given food at the start and where told they where allowed to go to the 126 building to grab there food but when they got there they where told to go back to there building without being given food #9towers pic.twitter.com/Wl3YA4nWiw

— amr osman (@amore___31) July 5, 2020

Social worker Ahmed Dini lives in the Canning Street tower in North Melbourne. He said he was angry when he first learned of the lockdown but said he had come to accept the situation. “I never thought in my life that I’d be locked in my own house,” he said. “What can you do about it? I’m spending most of my time looking out the window.”

Amona Hassab, who has family in one of the towers, said she had emailed the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services about the situation at the Flemington Housing Estate in March.

“I just wanted to know what measures the DHHS are taking in response to minimising the spread of the coronavirus,” she said in the email. “We know that most tenants are especially vulnerable to this illness … People there, my family and relatives included, live in dense, low-income house often with large families and in many cases elderly relatives in a small flat.”

A resident of the Flemington estate attempted to flee before being stopped by police, said Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton on Monday.

The 32-year-old man will be charged with assaulting and resisting police as well as attempting to breach the COVID-19 order.

Additional reporting: Caroline Overington