Seated at a table in the steamy, dark gymnasium, Charles and Dorothy Romano were told they needed to apply for aid by phone -- but they have no phone service in their trailer park.
"We were told we were going to get a check right away," said Charles Romano. Although he acknowledged that FEMA was not to blame, Romano, 77, was visibly frustrated. "As you can see, FEMA didn't do nothin' for us."
Boats litter the shoreline of Charlotte Harbor in Punta Gorda., Fla., three days after Hurricane Charley tore through the region.
(Paul Lamison -- Tampa Tribune/AP)
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_____Photo Gallery_____
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Hurricane Charley Hits Florida: Hurricane Charley hit Florida on Friday with more force than predicted, leaving thousands homeless.
_____Dangerous Storms_____
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Hurricanes Compared: See how Charley compares with major storms over the past 10 years.
_____How to Help_____
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From FEMA: Some recommended charitable organizations.
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Orange Country Battered and Blue (The Washington Post, Aug 17, 2004)
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Rules May Have Saved Some Homes (The Washington Post, Aug 17, 2004)
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Fla. Begins Recovery From Deadly Storm (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
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For Devastated County's Retirees, a Paradise Is Lost (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
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Everything Must Go (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
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Calm Befalls the Storm (The Washington Post, Aug 16, 2004)
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Like many in the region, the Romanos have been subsisting on canned tuna, cold cereal and the occasional grilled hot dog served by the Salvation Army. The handful of restaurants operating beyond the affected area did a thriving round-the-clock business despite shortages. Some residents spent their day moving from one line to another in search of ice, gasoline, diapers, a generator or laundry service.
"We are basically lost," said Don O'Neal, 39. A mechanic who repairs county school buses, O'Neal said the house he is renting lost much of its roof and has serious water damage. "I can't get to work until I get our living arrangements worked out."
And the weather refused to cooperate. Monday opened with a 90-degree sun and concluded with a downpour, raising the prospects that already damaged roofs would collapse under the weight of the water.
About 100 of Sanibel Island's 6,000 residents ignored evacuation orders Friday, Harrity said. Financial losses on the island -- a haven for southwest Florida's wealthy elite -- could be large, but Harrity would not venture an estimate. Many islanders filtered through the Holiday Inn lobby Monday expressing frustration, worry -- and some fatalism.
"There's nothing you can do until they let us back on," said Edgar Barnes, who owns a small printing business on Sanibel. "You've just got to grin and bear it."
One day after President Bush toured the area, the White House announced it was increasing federal assistance for debris removal from 75 percent of cost to full reimbursement. The Internal Revenue Service announced it would extend the deadline for taxpayers who had been given until Monday to file. Taxpayers in Charlotte, DeSoto, Manatee and Sarasota counties now have until Oct. 15 to file, and may claim damages from the storm on this year's return or an amended version of their 2003 return.
Asked what people outside the state can do to help, Florida Community Affairs Secretary Thaddeus Cohen replied: "Send money."
Staff writer Manuel Roig-Franzia in Wauchula, Fla., and researcher Lucy Shackelford in Washington contributed to this report.
