Flat Man meets flatmates ... Welcoming Flat Man to their
Great King St flat last night are (from left) Kane Attrill
(19), Dan McConvie (18), Xanthe Musgrave (18), Liv Stapley
(18), Nick Marr (19), Jimmy McDonald (20), Matt Baty (19),
Ben Fleming (18), Dylan Wilson (20), Aaron Blair (20) and
Dan Barr (20). Photo by Linda Robertson.
Caped Christchurch crusader Flat Man thought he had seen
the most devastated homes imaginable in the wake of the
Canterbury earthquakes. But nothing could prepare him for the
student flats of Dunedin.
''This is the sorriest flat I've ever seen. It would be one
of the most sad cases of a flat I've ever heard of,'' he said
of a flat he visited during a tour of 20 Dunedin flats
yesterday. ''There's only one girl living there and she has
come home to a live sheep in the lounge and a dead fish in
her bedroom.
''We've got flats with bad earthquake damage in Christchurch,
but the student flats I've seen in Dunedin take it to a whole
new level,'' he said.
The residents of 673 Great King St were one of 20 student
flats to receive a food parcel from the stockinged superhero
yesterday.
''We wrote to Flat Man because we desperately needed his
help,'' Dan McConvie (18) said.
The student survival packs contained chips, soft drink,
biscuits ''and essentials like baked beans and toilet
paper''.
Flat Man became an inspiration to Christchurch after
earthquakes by leaving food parcels at night outside damaged
homes for the unsuspecting residents. He keeps his identity a
closely guarded secret and will only reveal he is ''an
unassuming student juggling essays with a part-time job''.
''I've been doing this in Christchurch for two years now and
wanted to expand my horizons. I came down to Dunedin before
Christmas, but it was quiet then so I thought I'd come back
and get among O-Week. It's been fun and people here have
really appreciated it.''
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