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A severely ill woman has lived alone by candle light for a year without electricity or gas after her benefits were axed.

Donna Cross is a tragic example of how vulnerable people are slipping through the cracks of society.

The 56-year-old lives out of a crumbling living room in Walton with only a stained sofa and duvet to keep her warm.

According to Ms Cross: “The worst thing is the constant cold.”

This only worsens her deteriorating health: she has anaemia, type two diabetes and a chest infection that often causes her skin to bleed.

Ms Cross, had her Employment and Support Allowance cut last year and can no longer afford electricity, gas or heating.

When she does have food she has to go to a friend’s house to heat it up.

Ms Cross, from Liverpool, lives out of a derelict and damp room where both the flooring and wallpaper is peeling off.

She said: “It’s getting to winter. There are times when I’ve wanted to go up to the candle for heat. Even under the quilt I can still feel the cold.

“When the electricity goes off, I’m in total darkness. I can’t even read a book. It’s too cold to even get out under the duvet and get a biscuit.

“Normal houses are warmer than this, aren’t they?”

Ms Cross has been receiving benefits since she left school.

But they were cut last year after she failed to turn up to a medical assessment because she had to go a doctor’s appointment.

She said: “I used to get Jobseekers Allowance even though I’ve told them I’m not well enough to work.

“If I’m too ill to work, how can I look for a job? And how can I look for a job if I can’t use a computer?

“When they stopped the benefits last year, that’s when I felt I was in a situation where I didn’t know if I was going to cope.”

Without hot water, Ms Cross has been unable to wash for months and only has one soiled pair of clothes.

She said: “When there’s no hot water I can’t even wash my clothes because I can’t boil a kettle.”

Although she has an electric heater, she rarely has the electricity to power it.

And Ms Cross often has to brave the freezing cold on an empty stomach.

Ms Cross said: “The diabetes means I can’t walk that far. It causes me sweats and makes me tired.

“I’ve told the council about my illnesses but they said they couldn’t do anything because I’ve had the limit of vouchers.”

She added: “I can’t cook a meal - not only does the cooker not work but I also don’t have any food because all the foodbank stuff is out-of-date.

“With my diabetes I have to eat.”

Some of the only edible food in the house is for a stray cat that occasionally pops in.

“I just wish I could get off the couch, have a wash, clean my clothes, have a hot meal and live like a normal person,” she said.

Without any money, Ms Cross has no way to buy food or top up her electricity and gas metres.

While Scottish Power and British Gas both allowed her to use some electricity on credit, Scottish Power cut her off due to unpaid bills. She had previously left British Gas.

She was forced to pawn off some of her personal items for a bit of change to have enough electricity to boil a kettle, but now she has no way of keeping herself warm.

And since her husband, Patrick, died in 1997, her destitute life has been a lonely one.

She said: “When my husband died I was depressed, crying, and very sad.

“The past is still with me: my husband died, the depression is still here, my dogs got taken away.

“Loneliness has kind of set in because nobody comes to see me.”

During the day Ms Cross seeks solace in the warmth of Norris Green Library.

But when it closes she is forced to return to her meagre living conditions.

She said: “When it’s dark it’s even more horrible. I have a hot water bottle which keeps me warm slightly.

“The house is pitch black. When I get off the couch, I get too cold to do anything.”

But the sheets of neatly written notes sprawled across the room suggests she keeps herself busy at home.

She said: “I like reading. They’re just words I’ve taken from the Bible.

“When there’s words in the Bible and I don’t know what they mean I look them up in the back of the book and write them down.

“I got myself some glasses from Poundland and it’s the only way I can see but they broke and I can’t read anymore.”

Still, Ms Cross refuses to give in to her inhuman living conditions: “I just wish my life had gone a bit better.

“But I haven’t given up. I still have hope.”

A Liverpool City Council spokesman said: “We can’t comment in detail on individual cases except to say that in circumstances such as this extensive and repeated efforts are made by a range of services to support individuals, including advice around budgeting and additional financial support such as access to the Liverpool Citizen Support Scheme.”

After being approached by the ECHO, Scottish Power said: “We have provided Ms Cross with financial assistance for six years and we have now written off her outstanding debt as a goodwill gesture.

“We will send someone to reconnect her right away.”

On Friday a hamper full of food and household items was donated to Ms Cross and her electricity has since been switched back on.

We are still being inundated with offers from generous readers so we advise you or anyone who wishes to help to donate items to their local foodbank.

You can find your local foodbank here.