Exclusive: Is Rainham The Most Dangerous Place To Breathe In Havering? How Opening A Window Is A Luxury.

Most of us have read about the smoke-filled air across Rainham caused by the Launders Lane landfill site. But unless you live there, it’s hard to grasp the devastating impact it has on people’s everyday lives. The Havering Daily spoke with 70-year-old Pauline, who was diagnosed with COPD eight years ago, to hear first-hand what it’s like living just one mile from the site — where even opening a window can feel like a dangerous gamble.

For residents living near Launders Lane in Rainham, opening a window is not an everyday choice — it’s a rare luxury. But for Pauline, going to bed at night is more like preparing a hospital ward than a bedroom. Pauline has lived in Rainham for 40 years, moving to her current home 16 years ago, just one mile from the notorious landfill site on Launders Lane. Eight years ago, her life changed forever when she was diagnosed with COPD.

“I have COPD, emphysema, and bronchiectasis, alongside a condition called AF. It comes from poor air quality or being in contact with substances like asbestos,” says Pauline. Life close to the landfill site has taken its toll. “I took a chance the other day and opened the window. It really is a luxury to open a window here. I woke up with the choking smell and there was a thick fog outside. It wasn’t mist, it was an actual fog. Houses were smothered with this fog alongside Brady Primary School,” she continues.

Pauline’s evening routine before bed is far from normal. “My bedroom resembles a hospital room. The windows are shut, I have an air purifier, a dehumidifier, a salt machine — all switched on alongside a fan during the summer. I have an inhaler I take three times a day and a nebuliser if things are very bad. Three years ago, my life wasn’t like this. I managed out on my own. Now, I’m reliant on my husband and I’m wheelchair-bound. Nearing winter, I know it’s time to button down the hatches and prepare myself, and hope that I will make it through another winter.”

Let that last line sink in: we have a Havering resident who does not know if she will make it through another winter. Pauline has already faced life-threatening hospital stays. “Last February the PM2.5 levels were 172 at the end of winter. I had fallen ill on New Year’s Eve and couldn’t breathe. I had a bad chest infection and was given three lots of antibiotics. Doctors told my family to prepare for the worst. I have emergency COPD packs issued to me — I used to use them two or three times during the winter. Now I’m using them practically every month.” Her hospital admissions speak volumes: “I’ve been in A&E eight times, three times in resus, with my husband being told I might not make it.”

Pauline’s story is not unique. Residents across Rainham are used to the smell of smoke, and the stigma of poor health. “We are all used to having runny noses, drippy noses — it’s quite embarrassing at times. Our houses are always covered in dust,” she adds. This is daily life for the community, a permanent misery they should never have to endure.

Pauline finishes with words that cut through the fog: “It really is absolutely criminal to live under these conditions. I feel for our children and the conditions they are growing up in.” So next time you open your window to let in fresh air, spare a thought for Rainham residents — where opening a window is a luxury, and where every breath can be a battle.

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