Maggots falling through ceiling in East Dulwich were from dead body

[SLad]

Dear kdsd77,

I don't know why the three posters who followed yours have ignored what you say but well done you for your efforts to help your neighbour and I'm really sorry that you had to go through an obviously traumatic event.

I'm sorry also that the Mail journos saw fit to move the focus of the article to the more sensationalist aspect of where the maggots came from. I suppose this is an awful and salutary tale about how little control we have about the way in which we are portrayed in the media once we let them get their claws into us: not your fault at all.

Looking forward, I hope you and your family find some peace with all of this and can get back to a quieter family life as soon as possible.

S

[Katy Tonbridge]

Thanks kdsd77 for this dignified explanation of the background to the story.

kdsd77 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I am the mother of four and unfortunately for my

> family and I this story has become something it

> was never meant to be. I knew Richard in passing

> for as long as we lived here and Tayo knew more

> about him than I did. My horror was not about the

> source of the maggots, my distress was initially

> about maggots that seemed to appear from nowhere

> in numbers. The papers failed to mention I spent

> all weekend trying to get someone to check on my

> next door neighbour and that I called the police

> on the Saturday. I was distraught when I

> discovered what happened to him and somehow

> believed I could have saved him even though I was

> away when he may have passed on. There was no

> smell until the Monday we found him, he was very

> private and I did all I could to get someone to

> check in on him. This story was meant to be about

> Richard and how he was alone, it was meant to

> highlight the incompetence and lack of care of the

> Housing Association. It was not about me, the

> maggots or my disgust. Had I been so disgusted, I

> would have left my house and demanded compensation

> and all the other things ppl do in this

> compensation society. I stayed to keep my home

> clean and to make sure that Richard gets a decent

> burial and his personal belongings do not get get

> discarded as if he meant nothing. He deserves

> better than just being the deceased man in my

> story. I hope that clarifies things.

[intexasatthe moment]

Sorry , I missed Karen's post .

Really sorry that this awful situation has been made worse by press reporting .

Terrible situation for all involved .

[Otta]

kdsd77 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I am the mother of four and unfortunately for my

> family and I this story has become something it

> was never meant to be. I knew Richard in passing

> for as long as we lived here and Tayo knew more

> about him than I did. My horror was not about the

> source of the maggots, my distress was initially

> about maggots that seemed to appear from nowhere

> in numbers. The papers failed to mention I spent

> all weekend trying to get someone to check on my

> next door neighbour and that I called the police

> on the Saturday. I was distraught when I

> discovered what happened to him and somehow

> believed I could have saved him even though I was

> away when he may have passed on. There was no

> smell until the Monday we found him, he was very

> private and I did all I could to get someone to

> check in on him. This story was meant to be about

> Richard and how he was alone, it was meant to

> highlight the incompetence and lack of care of the

> Housing Association. It was not about me, the

> maggots or my disgust. Had I been so disgusted, I

> would have left my house and demanded compensation

> and all the other things ppl do in this

> compensation society. I stayed to keep my home

> clean and to make sure that Richard gets a decent

> burial and his personal belongings do not get get

> discarded as if he meant nothing. He deserves

> better than just being the deceased man in my

> story. I hope that clarifies things.

Fair play to you for this response.

[Loz]

kdsd77 - I hope Richard is at peace now and you and your family get though this horrible experience.

[Zebedee Tring]

kdsd77 - I agree with all the comments so far on your post and wish you all the best for the future after this nasty experience.

[Robert Poste's Child]

kdsd77, I'm so sorry for how the DM portrayed you and I'm sure it will have made the experience more painful. I think a lot of people reading that article will have assumed that it wasn't a fair representation. I hope that the relevant authorities are now all doing their stuff to support you and also anyone like your neighbour who may be living alone with health problems.

[ClaphamMum]

I'm so sorry to hear this sad story. This reminded me of a similar story I heard on the incredible The Moth Podcast, here is a link to the story - told in front of a live audience.

http://themoth.org/posts/stories/the-drip

For those who don't know about it - "The Moth is an acclaimed not-for-profit organization dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. It is a celebration of both the raconteur, who breathes fire into true tales of ordinary life, and the storytelling novice, who has lived through something extraordinary and yearns to share it. At the center of each performance is, of course, the story ? and The Moth?s directors work with each storyteller to find, shape and present it."

[Shirley1979]

Agreed ..Karen I am also a resident who lives a few doors away from Karen and her family And Also Richard Williams who sadly passed away in the circumstance he did, I know Karen Personally from living within the same estate and both herself and the family are very respectful and lovely and to be fair , When I read the article YES agreed it did seem as though the story seemed based on the horror of her family home being infested by Maggots that came from the flat above , And Yes it felt as though Richard and he's passing had been dismissed via the article and that in fact the main story was in regards to Mrs Davy and her family being horrified and traumatised over the Maggots and flies , And some may judge that her story is in regards to ether a form of attention or in intentions to gain a form of compensation , I would just like to add and clarify a few things... I can assure you this is not the families intentions, their anger is in relation to the fact that , When realising something was not quite right she acted upon it , she had reported it to the Housing and was told that it was not a matter for the Housing , What she had 1st thought was a simple maggot issue due to other reasons, I mean when Maggots appear we all know that our 1st reaction is not that they are coming from a Decomposed Body or Food..We consider, Dustbins, Raw out of date foods, Flies Larva , or general Mould and Damp areas ..Its only when they are increasing and coming from the same area you feel you need to investigate further , Had she or the family suspected a death of course they would of acted on it further or taken sooner action, in all situations we don't always take the appropriate action first...I myslef also pass the area daily and never smelt or suspected anything as its not a case you hear or see everyday especially being the quiet estate we live on many are reserved and generally hardly seen so its very typical to not notice something like this sooner , YES its also a shame that neighbours are not always those who check in on one another which is sad especially in a case like this one, but I mean not disrepecting the family of Mr Williams at all but if family are sometimes unable to check on there loved ones especially knowing he had a medical issue, who are we to depend on the neighbours and the Housing to be responsible, Not everyone acts in the way they perhaps should do when they either feel something is wrong or something has been reported, having knowing he was laying there in the upsetting way he was ...Would have acted differently..I feel this is a case of the loss of a very private gentleman who was well respected and loved and sadly lost his life in the way he did...As someone stated above , he would travel across the country to be there for someone its just a shame it was not returned , we can all blame one another for some form of possibly either saving him from his death or from him being found with a less decomposed body ..We can blame the family, we can blame the neighbour/s , we can blame the housing (Not Sheltered) We can blame the Police ..The fact is this is one of those unfortunate ways to the end of someone's life , we don't all leave this world in a peaceful way...Is all I would like to add is ..The story of what's happened will either see Karen and her family as being the ones who reported it to the police and if it was not for them he still may be lying there un-found, or they may see Karen and her Family as Oppertunist ...But is all I can say is I totally see each and everyone's views as like I said ....Even knowing the family myself the story was made to seem that they were more interested in there own interest of there trauma than the death of their neighbour, but I can honestly say hand on my heart..They are a lovely family who acted as soon as they could we can't define a correct time to do things in life...They are deeply saddened by the lost of their neighbour and live with the guilt of feeling they could have done more than they did when infact they couldn't ...They are not responsible and they are not looking out for themselves they are just not those sort of family at all and anyone who knows them personally would agree, We all have to live with feeling that he laid there alone day after day night after night, we saw he's body being carried away, we saw the lonelyness of his home, we saw forensics go in and out , police at the door 24hrs a day, Karens family had Maggots in her home that fed of a human corpse above her home where she laid asleep, of course she is traumatised and upset and disgusted and angry ..Wouldn't any of us be...She tried to stress a point of the fact she is totally ashamed that she tried to raise the alarm and was alone in doing so until action was taken she couldn't contact his family and she couldn't break an entry she and her family did what they thought was best...and the main thing is ..Sadly he was found in the conditions he was, BUT he is the main focus here and Karen and family are fully aware of that, at a time like this its unfair to be critisised for the actions we take, I appreciate we all have our views and opinions and they are all welcome and heard, But lets just be blessed with the fact that Mr Williams can be laid to finally RIP .....I have not wrote this in any way to be offensive or critised I totally see everyones views ..I just feel I had to have my say and hope that we can all respect that Mr Williams was a lovely gentleman who unfortunately lost his life and will be missed by many...And Hopefully they are able to get to the bottom of how he had passed and lay him to rest peacefully ...xxxxxxx Shirley xxxx

[Shirley1979]

Agreed ..Karen I am also a resident who lives a few doors away from Karen and her family And Also Richard Williams who sadly passed away in the circumstance he did, I know Karen Personally from living within the same estate and both herself and the family are very respectful and lovely and to be fair , When I read the article YES agreed it did seem as though the story seemed based on the horror of her family home being infested by Maggots that came from the flat above , And Yes it felt as though Richard and he's passing had been dismissed via the article and that in fact the main story was in regards to Mrs Davy and her family being horrified and traumatised over the Maggots and flies , And some may judge that her story is in regards to ether a form of attention or in intentions to gain a form of compensation , I would just like to add and clarify a few things... I can assure you this is not the families intentions, their anger is in relation to the fact that , When realising something was not quite right she acted upon it , she had reported it to the Housing and was told that it was not a matter for the Housing , What she had 1st thought was a simple maggot issue due to other reasons, I mean when Maggots appear we all know that our 1st reaction is not that they are coming from a Decomposed Body or Food..We consider, Dustbins, Raw out of date foods, Flies Larva , or general Mould and Damp areas ..Its only when they are increasing and coming from the same area you feel you need to investigate further , Had she or the family suspected a death of course they would of acted on it further or taken sooner action, in all situations we don't always take the appropriate action first...I myslef also pass the area daily and never smelt or suspected anything as its not a case you hear or see everyday especially being the quiet estate we live on many are reserved and generally hardly seen so its very typical to not notice something like this sooner , YES its also a shame that neighbours are not always those who check in on one another which is sad especially in a case like this one, but I mean not disrepecting the family of Mr Williams at all but if family are sometimes unable to check on there loved ones especially knowing he had a medical issue, who are we to depend on the neighbours and the Housing to be responsible, Not everyone acts in the way they perhaps should do when they either feel something is wrong or something has been reported, having knowing he was laying there in the upsetting way he was ...Would have acted differently..I feel this is a case of the loss of a very private gentleman who was well respected and loved and sadly lost his life in the way he did...As someone stated above , he would travel across the country to be there for someone its just a shame it was not returned , we can all blame one another for some form of possibly either saving him from his death or from him being found with a less decomposed body ..We can blame the family, we can blame the neighbour/s , we can blame the housing (Not Sheltered) We can blame the Police ..The fact is this is one of those unfortunate ways to the end of someone's life , we don't all leave this world in a peaceful way...Is all I would like to add is ..The story of what's happened will either see Karen and her family as being the ones who reported it to the police and if it was not for them he still may be lying there un-found, or they may see Karen and her Family as Oppertunist ...But is all I can say is I totally see each and everyone's views as like I said ....Even knowing the family myself the story was made to seem that they were more interested in there own interest of there trauma than the death of their neighbour, but I can honestly say hand on my heart..They are a lovely family who acted as soon as they could we can't define a correct time to do things in life...They are deeply saddened by the lost of their neighbour and live with the guilt of feeling they could have done more than they did when infact they couldn't ...They are not responsible and they are not looking out for themselves they are just not those sort of family at all and anyone who knows them personally would agree, We all have to live with feeling that he laid there alone day after day night after night, we saw he's body being carried away, we saw the lonelyness of his home, we saw forensics go in and out , police at the door 24hrs a day, Karens family had Maggots in her home that fed of a human corpse above her home where she laid asleep, of course she is traumatised and upset and disgusted and angry ..Wouldn't any of us be...She tried to stress a point of the fact she is totally ashamed that she tried to raise the alarm and was alone in doing so until action was taken she couldn't contact his family and she couldn't break an entry she and her family did what they thought was best...and the main thing is ..Sadly he was found in the conditions he was, BUT he is the main focus here and Karen and family are fully aware of that, at a time like this its unfair to be critisised for the actions we take, I appreciate we all have our views and opinions and they are all welcome and heard, But lets just be blessed with the fact that Mr Williams can be laid to finally RIP .....I have not wrote this in any way to be offensive or critised I totally see everyones views ..I just feel I had to have my say and hope that we can all respect that Mr Williams was a lovely gentleman who unfortunately lost his life and will be missed by many...And Hopefully they are able to get to the bottom of how he had passed and lay him to rest peacefully ...xxxxxxx

[Shirley1979]

Apologies for the double post..As it stated error on my 1st post and when I re-sent 2 had appeared I do apoogies to all ...xxx

[Mustard]

Apparently housing associations do not keep a key to any of their properties. I find that very bizarre. If they did, then this man's body would not have been in this situation as long as it was.

I found this fact out when someone was trying to gain access to a neighbouring property to do some surveying and had to wait until the tenant contacted him, after repeated attempts had been made to contact the tenant. It took 3 months to gain access. The HA said they didn't have a key and never kept keys.

[Robert Poste's Child]

Hi Shirley1979. Just wanted to say that I thought your post shows that there's plenty of neighbourliness going on on your estate.

It's completely understandable that Karen wouldn't immediately realise exactly where the maggots were coming from - it's easy for someone reading a newspaper or watching a film, which has been edited to tell the story, to think that she should have known, but when you're actually in a situation that's developing around you it doesn't always happen like that.

Recently I was in a shop and a woman nearby started stamping around complaining. When I looked up she glared at me so I turned away to avoid making things worse. A moment later she fell down and hit her head quite badly, and I've been feeling bad ever since because if I'd realised those were her symptoms of an epileptic seizure coming on I could have helped her. I know it wasn't my fault but I feel like I let her down.

[kdsd77]

That is how I feel. Guilt that I didn't get to him sooner. Guilt that my desire to highlight the laidback attitudes of housing associations has become this story of disgust. I feel no way about what this has done to me but I feel bad that his family and friends have found out because of news stories doing their rounds. It has all ended with next of kin been found and I am happy to let it end there. May Richard and his family find peace.

[Robert Poste's Child]

Hope you find some peace too.

[Shirley1979]

@ Robert Poste's Child

I cannot thank you enough for your comforting message as sites like these and other forums and youtube can sometimes encourage unwanted comments of some who delibritly come onto them to cause a scene, where as that's not what the aims of the forums are set up for, I think its absolutley great that there are such forums where we have a voice,a say and an opinion, And each will all have either the same or a different view, I really hope that you do not continue to feel or carry the guilt @ Robert Poste's Child As even when we are familiar with people ...We cannot save the world...Family members , friends, or the public should not feel guilt from a loss of someone who has passed due to medical reasons or natural causes,You never took her life , or destroyed her families life by robbing her of her life they say when its suppose to happen it will, sometimes in some cases lives can be saved and sometimes they cant we have a balance of fortunate and unfortunate...There's 2 sides to a set of weighing scales and only god chooses which side becomes the heavier side and when so I do hope that you can overcome the burden of feeling like somewhat you are at fault ..Especially when you have no medical experience or know how to prevent the symtoms even medics can't save everyone...The same with Karen Davy My neighbour, I thank you for your voice and yes its a very private estate with private people who tend to not breath in everyones space yet can be polite and friendly in open spaces surrounding where we live, I just think that in cases like this ..Is only fair we support those in distress including Karen and Her family and Including Mr Richard Williams and he's family and all those effected by he's passing ..Not increase the stress further, The importaint thing is that Mr Williams will now be abled to be laid to Rest in Peace and that eventually both he's family and Mrs Davey's family can in time move forward and be able to realise that this is a very sad sad story and case of a wonderful man who had a lonely death but there is no blame only anger ...The main thing is ..The story should be focused on wishing him peace not on Mrs Davy's motives or actions as like you stated above..Some of what we read is not the same as what we hear...I hope both families can now continue to move forward in their own ways ..And remember that Mrs Davy is not after a reward or compensation ..What she also did was very brave and upsetting and YES she hadn't realised sooner but that does not make her responsible ..I thank everyone for there comments and responses and understanding...Like also stated above it would be nice for neighbours to look out for one another including those effected by things that happen in the homes they reside in...These are the times people should come together ..And support one another..Another Angel was gained in heaven and may he RIP ..

[kdsd77]

Thank you to everyone for the kind words and most importantly, the understanding. It has all come to an end and we can now go back to making our home as it was, a place of laughter, fun and love. Richard will be remembered for who he was before all this and not as he was when this story came out. I love my estate, the people on it and so do my children. Lovely neighbours like Shirley are the reason we refuse to be moved or re-housed. There are too many positives and this is just a growth period in our lives to teach us compassion, caring and for me strength. I am grateful for people with big hearts as most people have proven to be and I can say no more than thank you again for all the support.

[AJ3]

Could anybody tell me why the Housing Association was at fault here?

[Shirley1979]

@ kdsd77 You are more than welcome , I just felt it needed to be said from someone who lives also within the same part of the building and knows both you and the family personally, Its ok for people to have an opinion we are all human and allowed to express our feelings and emotions , I feel that at this time ..Its unfortunate of the circumstances but only fair to say that he is now at peace and those effected by the loss can continue to recover from all the distress and upset including for his family members, I am so proud of the Estate we live on, its so welcoming and friendly yet so reserved and private, And it can only show that when a neighbour is in need of a neighbour and that neighbour is aware ..its only communal we try to help..Unfortunatly it was a little to late for Mr Williams ..I am happy that you feel the appreciation towards yourself and your lovely family & in all honesty think you acted as you did to seek the help and advice you did ..Proud that you have spoke out about how you feel Karen xxxxx