21,000 households on P.E.I. still waiting for Fiona relief payments

As of Tuesday morning, just over 35,500 Island households had received a $250 payment in provincial post-Fiona funding through the Red Cross on P.E.I., said the group's director. 

Since about 57,000 households applied for the financial relief, that means roughly 21,000 households are still waiting. 

Speaking to host Mitch Cormier on Island Morning, Bill Lawlor said there could be many reasons why those people have to verify their identity before receiving the funds. 

"It could be as simple as a nickname that they use instead of their formal name. I know that sounds really simple, but that could be what it is," said Lawlor. 

He added it could also be a question of a mismatched address or date of birth, or a spelling error. 

Hoping to speed up process 

Over the past two weeks, CBC News has reported on multiple Islanders having to stand in line for hours at Red Cross reception centres to verify their identity to receive the $250 payment. 

Lawlor said the Red Cross has been meeting with provincial officials over the past couple of days to try to find ways to make the process move more quickly. He said there are more meetings scheduled Tuesday. 

Lawlor also said it's not uncommon to have this number of households still waiting for relief. 

"The situation happening on the Island is indeed in line with what happens in other responses when it comes to distributing these funds," said Lawlor.

"That first 70 per cent goes relatively quickly, and it's that last 30 per cent that we always end up having a bit of a struggle with."

Lawlor said his organization is committed to getting Islanders the financial support they need. 

"We're not gonna stop until we get this right," he said.

Red Cross survey

All of the nearly 58,000 Island households that have registered for the $250 in provincial funding should have received a survey from the organization, asking questions about how they've been impacted by the storm, how much they're struggling, and what other support they have.

Lawlor said the organization is using the results of these surveys to determine eligibility for an additional $500 payment from funds donated through the Red Cross's Hurricane Fiona in Canada Appeal.

So far, he said the results indicate many Islanders need the additional financial support. He said those households take priority for this payment.

"We know this is not the end of it for us," Lawlor said. "So, here's $500 for those who have identified having the most urgent of needs, now and in the coming weeks."

"But there will be more needs that will grow over time as well."

The Red Cross told CBC News more than 40,000 Island households have completed the survey so far. Nearly 5,000 of those have already received the additional $500 payment, although the organization is still in the process of analyzing survey responses.