The head of the peak body for community housing in New South Wales says the state government has taken too long to reach out to residents vulnerable to COVID, particularly in the Illawarra.
More than 700 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in the region in the 10 days from September 21, and two accommodation buildings, used by at-risk residents, have been locked down after several infections were identified.
In a bid to curb further transmission of the deadly Delta variant, 250 community housing residents and staff were targeted at a vaccination clinic held in Wollongong on Thursday.
"We know the region has really struggled to get supplies and that put our community behind the eight ball," Community Housing Industry Association chair and Illawarra Housing Trust CEO Michelle Adair said.
"We needed to be proactive much earlier, and that's true of migrant and refugee communities, true of people with disabilities who are living in group homes."
'A pretty dark situation'
She said the Housing Trust had reached out to its 1,200 households in the Illawarra to ask residents if they needed help.
Sixteen-year-old Demi, who did not want to use her surname, received her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at Thursday's clinic alongside her brother Klein, 15.
The siblings said the protracted lockdown had been difficult, and they looked forward to more freedoms once they were fully vaccinated.
"I want to get things back to normal for the community and my education as well," Klein said.
"It's been a pretty big change for me and a lot of the students that go to my school.
'Access not the issue'
The state's opposition health spokesman believed the outbreak could have been avoided if Wollongong's mass vaccination clinic had received the supply it was promised.
"The Premier needs to explain why a facility that her government announced two months ago, that was announced to be able to do 2,500 vaccines a day, is running at less than half that capacity," Keira MP Ryan Park said.
But New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian denied a lack of supply was to blame for the surge in local cases.
"The most vulnerable [people] are often the ones where you need to be the most proactive … in providing vaccine to them.
"But we have seen, unfortunately, certain sections of the community in the Illawarra and Shellharbour regions susceptible to the virus more than others," Ms Berejiklian said.
The Illawarra-Shoalhaven Local Health District said a further 5,800 doses of Pfizer had been ordered for the region.
