Red Cross struggles to accommodate people displace by emergencies

The Canadian Red Cross is struggling to find accommodations in Nova Scotia for people displaced from their homes.

Typically, the Red Cross can find temporary lodging for people who have lost their home due to an emergency such as a fire or flood. But the housing crisis along with low hotel vacancies due to tourism are making that difficult or impossible.

Bill Lawlor, director of Atlantic government and strategic relations for the Red Cross, says the situation started to deteriorate in late May.

"We certainly feel the crunch during most tourism seasons, but this year has been like none other in my 24 years with the Red Cross."

Some displaced Nova Scotians, particularly in the Halifax Regional Municipality, have been located to AirBnBs and even campgrounds.

But campgrounds and AirBnBs are filling up with tourist season, too.

"The nature of our work is very last minute and that's when you run into challenges. If it's a Monday or Tuesday afternoon, we have little or no challenges. But once we start to approach the weekend … we certainly have challenges," said Lawlor.

"In some circumstances where we've not been able to find accommodations at all."

With COVID-19 restrictions easing and cruise ships returning, tourists are flocking to Nova Scotia for the first time since the pandemic began.

"It's a good news story for the hotel industry and accommodation sector. They've been struggling for a couple of years, so we understand that it's a really busy time. But not for those who require these emergency needs."

Lawlor says the housing crisis is also a major factor in this low vacancy rate.

The homeless population has more than doubled over the last four years in Halifax alone. And rates of homelessness in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality and other parts of eastern Nova Scotia are also on the rise.

The province has responded with fast-track development plans to increase housing stock. It wants to allow private developers to build 22,000 housing units as quickly as possible, mostly in the HRM.

But for people displaced from their home for financial reasons, domestic abuse, or disasters, shelter can't come soon enough.

Lawlor says when tourism dies down in the fall, the Red Cross is expecting the situation to ease.

With files from Tom Murphy.