Community groups in Prince Edward Island say they are worried that inflation, rent increases and the damage caused by post-tropical storm Fiona are leading to food insecurity among lower-income people.
Pauline Howard, a volunteer with the P.E.I. Food Exchange, says a regulatory decision last month allowing rent increases as high as 10.8 per cent, along with a rise in spoiled food due to the storm, will cause hardship into the winter.
Nouhad Mourad of the Charlottetown Mutual Aid group says many people had to throw food away because of extended power outages, adding that some lower-income Islanders lost pay for several weeks.
When the post-tropical storm slammed into the Island on Sept. 24, it caused about 90 per cent of the electrical system — or about 82,000 customers — to lose power.
About half remained without power for a week, with about 3,300 customers still without electricity as of today.
Mourad says people are lining up today at a Charlottetown mall to receive $250 from the Red Cross, but she says that amount will not be enough for many people to cover their losses.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2022.
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