ONE of the women who told this newspaper of their miserable living conditions in bug-infested Government emergency housing is now hopeful that her family will be rehoused soon.

Debbie Williams said she had been amazed by the amount of positive feedback she had received after she went public to tell of the state of her temporary Bermuda Housing Corporation accommodation at Gourlay Apartments, St. George's.

In last week's front-page story, Ms Williams and her next-door neighbour Dee-Ann Coke, who has lived there for a year, told of how the apartments were riddled with termites that damaged window frames and furniture, as well as cockroaches.

And Ms Williams issued an invitation to Premier Jennifer Smith to take time out from the Progressive Labour Party celebrations of her 30 years in public office at nearby Tobacco Bay last weekend to have a look around her home. Though the Premier did not pay a visit last weekend, Ms Williams said the story had helped her "110 per cent".

"I had a very good meeting at the Housing Corporation with Wendy Bassett and (acting general manager) Richard James," said Ms Williams.

"And I have been told that there are some evictions scheduled to take place and that I could be found a house by Friday (today)."

What concerned Ms Williams most was that her 19-year-old daughter was due to have a baby at the end of this month and she did not relish the prospect of the new addition to the family starting life among so many bugs.

Ms Williams had suggested that last Saturday politicians would be sipping champagne at Tobacco Bay, while she was putting up with flying termites a few hundred yards away.

"Maybe the baby is waiting for us to get a house before it comes into the world," said Ms Williams. "And when we do get a new place, it will be me who will go down to Tobacco Bay and celebrate with a bottle of bubbly.

"Since I went in the paper, many people have called me and come up to me in the street and given me positive feedback and support."

Some had urged her to keep on fighting her cause and had told her about more examples of poor housing conditions, both Government accommodations and housing rented from private landlords. For that reason, Ms Williams said she was considering setting up a committee to represent people with problems similar to hers. In the early hours of last Sunday morning, Ms Williams had awoken to find termites emerging from holes in the ceiling and flying around the apartment.

She had taped up the holes as a temporary measure and on Wednesday morning this week, a maintenance worker from the BHC had visited to seal up the holes.

Ms Williams said she had thrown out two box spring beds and four dressers because they had been riddled with termites. And she believed the BHC should replace them.

Health & Family Services Minister Nelson Bascome did not respond to faxed questions from the Mid-Ocean News about the plight of the Williams and Coke families last week.

Instead he chose to respond in Wednesday's Royal Gazette, pointing out that both families in question had turned down two offers of new accommodation as unsatisfactory - a fact that was stated in the Mid-Ocean News' original story.

Mr. Bascome said in the House of Assembly last week that the Mid-Ocean News was the only newspaper he would not return calls to. The Minister has repeatedly ignored this newspaper's calls and questions on a wide range of issues in the three months since the paper revealed evidence of extraordinary payments to contractors by the BHC.

Consequently no attempt was made this week to give Mr. Bascome his say on this story.

n Letter - see page 2.