Florida Panhandle Struggling to Recover from Hurricane Michael

Residents of Panama City and other Florida communities are calling for help, but it's unclear when help will arrive. The restoration of running water and electricity is the primary concern.

1 minute read

October 15, 2018, 7:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Florida National Guard

The Florida National Guard on the scene in Clarksville, Florida. | The National Guard / Flickr

The stories coming from the Florida Panhandle five days are intensifying in their distress after Hurricane Michael left a path of destruction four days ago.

Talal Ansari reports this morning that residents of Panama City are entering their fifth day without running water or electricity. Bay County, Florida, where Panama City is located, has implemented a 6:30 pm to 6:30 am curfew.

Ansari provides more details: "As of Sunday evening, 58,118 customers were still without power, according to Gulf Power. An estimated 35,000 utility workers from 26 states are in the region to help restore power, but in remote areas, electricity is still expected to remain out for weeks to come."

Personal anecdotes on the scene confirm a rising sense of desperation and reports of scant relief in the aftermath of the hurricane's destruction. Ansari's coverage echoes reporting by Richard Fausset, Audra D. S. Burch, and Alan Blinder from a few days earlier sharing similar stories.

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