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OneOrlando Fund money dispersed to survivors, families

ORLANDO, Fla. — Millions of dollars are now slowing being handed out to hundreds of Pulse terror attack victims and their families.

On Monday morning, the OneOrlando Fund chair announced that payments have begun processing for 299 claimants.

Despite an emergency injunction filed in an attempt to stop more than $29 million from going to victims and their families, distribution started Tuesday.

The injunction, which was denied by a judge Friday, called for an audit of the fund to take place before any money was distributed.

The OneOrlando Fund board spent Monday hammering out the final details of the disbursement schedule for those affected by the June 12 attack that left 49 dead and 53 wounded.

The largest amount of money, $350,000, will go to families of the victims killed in the attack.

People who were hospitalized will get between $60,000 and $300,000, depending on how long they stayed in the hospital.

That group includes 37 claims.

The third group of people to be paid from the OneOrlando Fund are people who were injured, but not hospitalized.

They will receive payments of $35,000.

The last group includes people who were at the club when the shooting took place, but weren’t injured. The 182 people in that group will be getting $25,000 each for mental health treatment.

In all, the board determined 299 of the claims they received were valid, but some were still being verified, OneOrlando Fund board chairman Alex Martins said Tuesday.

Martins said deciding how to divide the money took a lot of open discussion, and there were some last minute changes.

“We significantly increased the amount of money going to those that were in the club, but not injured,” Martins said. “We had a long discussion about the psychological events that many of those individuals are suffering.”

There were also some disputes as to who would receive some of the payments, and if the issue can’t be settled by the end of the week, the money will go into probate court until a legal next-of-kin is identified, Martins said.

The board decided to hold back $110,000 in the fund for the moment, but plans to disburse the rest of the funds once some of the current issues are resolved.