Watch the video above: Distribution centres run out of gift cards again Thursday. Jennifer Palisoc reports.
TORONTO – Dozens of people were turned away empty handed in Scarborough Thursday after lining up for hours to try to get a gift card to replace food spoiled after days of power outages caused by last week’s ice storm.
The province began handing out gift cards at Ontario Works locations in Toronto on Tuesday. The province has handed out close to $500,000 worth of gift cards since Tuesday, according to government officials.
The province is reminding Torontonians that the cards are for those who otherwise couldn’t afford to replace spoiled food.
Debbie Swales lined up at the Golden Mile Employment centre on Eglinton Avenue East at 6:20 a.m. for a card. Her power was knocked out during the storm and she thinks she lost about $300 of food including the turkey she had hoped to cook on Christmas Day.
“I thought once I got in there it was done very well. It was just waiting,” she said. “The process was very well done, it was very well organized in there.”
Watch the video below: Frustration boils over as dozens are turned away without food cards following long lineups
But others, who didn’t get a card, were more critical of the program. One woman, who identified herself only as Carol, said the process didn’t seem organized and officials should have told people ahead of time that there wasn’t enough cards for everyone.
“It’s nice that they’re doing it, it’s a wonderful incentive but on the other hand, the lack of organization or you know communication, like if people knew, they would go home earlier,” she said.
At the peak of the outages, 300,000 Toronto Hydro customers were without power.
WATCH: Toronto ice storm victims line up early in the morning for grocery gift cards being handed out at Ontario government offices (Jan. 2)
Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly said Thursday that he understands the frustration of people who couldn’t get gift cards.
“The uptake was far higher than, I think, originally anticipated,” he said during a press conference. “There will probably always be more of a demand than supply.”
Gift cards are available at Ontario Works locations around Toronto. Residents will only be asked to prove how many people are in their family and that they live in an area affected by the power outages.
The program is expected to expand to communities outside of Toronto in the coming days, according to a government official.
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