At least 2,100 apply for unemployment compensation. Meanwhile, more than $50-million in federal and state money is approved.
By STEPHEN NOHLGREN, WILL VAN SANT and JONI JAMES
Published August 19, 2004
PORT CHARLOTTE - Veronica Cinicollo, single mother of two, cleans homes for wealthy Punta Gorda residents. But when Hurricane Charley sucked up roofs and flattened walls, people stopped worrying about spiffing up their bathtubs. Cinicollo, 28, is out of a job.
"I have to pay rent, car insurance, bills," she said. "I have no food in the refrigerator."
Cinicollo was among hundreds who queued up for unemployment aid Wednesday at a state-run center. Cold-cut sandwiches and endless water - courtesy of the Salvation Army and American Red Cross - eased sweltering temperatures and the wounded mood of those in line.
More substantial help is on the way:
U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao announced a $50-million grant to provide unemployment assistance and training for Floridians whose jobs were affected by Charley, which ravaged nine counties Friday, and Tropical Storm Bonnie, which clipped the Panhandle last week.
Gov. Jeb Bush announced the Hurricane Charley Relief Effort, through which private donors can aid victims for years. Miami Dolphins' owner Wayne Huizenga kicked off the fund with a $1-million donation.
Lights and air-conditioning clicked on Wednesday for about 200,000 customers, though about 300,000 remain in the dark. Charlotte County, which took the brunt of Charley's 145-mph fury, is expected to regain power by Aug. 29.
Disaster recovery centers - hubs where authorities dole out services - are to open today in Volusia and Highlands counties and Saturday in Polk County.
The insurance industry announced its first official estimate of Charley-related payouts: $7.4-billion, almost all in Florida.
That's smaller than earlier horseback guesses of insured losses, which ran up to $14-billion. It still exceeds every hurricane except 1992's Andrew, which cost insurers $15.5-billion. The only U.S. catastrophe surpassing Andrew was 9/11.
While Wall Street might comprehend nine-figure sums, people waiting in Port Charlotte's jobless line measured losses a bit closer to minimum wage.
Kelly Wood was a cashier at the Supertest gas station in Punta Gorda before it was flattened. The job paid $7.50 an hour.
Janet Burkhart, who lives with her parents, does oil changes for $7 an hour at the Grease Monkey. She was hoping for a raise so she and her 3-year-old son could get out on their own. Now the Grease Monkey has no roof.
"Now you have to start off at rock bottom again," she said.
The unemployment center, like those in Arcadia, Fort Myers and Wauchula, were set up by the state Agency for Workforce Innovation. It is housed in a trailer parked at a recreation center. Seniors, single moms and young out-of-work men in muscle shirts stood under umbrellas to ward off the sun.
They held places in line for one another as they went for a sandwich or to portable toilets. Empty water bottles piled up at nearby Salvation Army and Red Cross trailers.
Unemployment checks will depend on family size and income, with a maximum of $275 a week. Self-employed people who don't qualify for traditional unemployment insurance are eligible for emergency aid.
By mid-day Wednesday, at least 2,100 people in Charley's path had applied for unemployment compensation in person or over the Internet, said Workforce Innovation spokesman Warren May.
Claims filed in Port Charlotte were trucked overnight to Fort Lauderdale for processing. Officials hope to make electronic deposits into bank accounts within about a week.
The $50-million federal jobs grant announced Wednesday will pay people, among other things, to help with hurricane cleanup, restoration and humanitarian efforts, state officials said.
The sooner the better, said 30-year-old electrician Ralph Guthrie. Given the circumstances, he could advertise a marketable trade. But his company's workshop was destroyed, along with its service vehicles. Said Guthrie: "It's kind of hard to work on electricity when there ain't none."
While state and federal authorities deploy tax money, the private sector continues to reach out.
Charley-related pledges to the American Red Cross have reached $14.7-million, spokesman Karen Coates said. That includes $100,000 from St. Petersburg-based Raymond James Financial, $50,000 from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, $50,000 from Federated Department Stories Inc. and 10,000 $10 gift certificates from CVS Corp.
Gov. Jeb Bush announced a new fund for long-term rebuilding, called the Hurricane Charley Relief Fund, which will pick up where other charities leave off. It is patterned after Miami-Dade's "We Will Rebuild" fund, which raised $27-million over 31/2 years for Hurricane Andrew relief.
"The Red Cross and The Salvation Army will be moving on to the next disaster. That is their role, they'll go to an earthquake or a tornado," Bush said. "But once electricity gets restored and phones are on, when the supply lines have subsided and there is some degree of normalcy, there are going to be a lot of people hurting still."
Besides Huizenga's $1-million donation, oil companies Shell and BP, American Express, Publix and the DeVos family of Orlando have pledged significant commitments, Bush said.
The Miami-Dade fund underwrote a wide range of programs, from church repair to assisting children with emotional problems.
Former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack will lead the Hurricane Charley fund's steering committee, Bush said. Tallahassee lobbyist Steve Uhlfelder, who runs Bush's mentoring effort, will serve as executive officer. The fund will make complete reports every six months on how it spends the money, the governor said.
Bridges to Sanibel Island and Fort Myers Beach opened, allowing residents to return to check on damage. The bridge between Sanibel and Captiva Island remained closed.
Fawcett Memorial Hospital reopened with 100 beds for new patients, though Charlotte's other two hospitals remained closed. Fawcett Memorial will be allowed to perform open heart surgery under an emergency order signed by Alan Levine, secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration.
Meanwhile, more and more residents are seeking treatment at tents housing emergency medical teams. Ailments include injuries sustained during repairs, poisoning from rotten food and contaminated water, lack of prescription drugs, asthma and other breathing problems.
"It really gets back to getting electricity as soon as possible because that's going to solve a lot of problems," said Tommy Thompson, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "Right now there are a lot of heart attacks in people who are going out and cleaning out their property."
The Civil Air Patrol, which has been taking damage assessment photographs, took on a new job: Locating and silencing about 700 emergency locator transmitters that are sending off signals from damaged boats and airplanes. In normal times, these devices automatically bleep up to satellites when they are jarred in accidents. Now they are sending out signals in droves, hampering efforts to identify true emergencies.
Kids in Charlotte County got a break. Though schools aren't scheduled to reopen until August, extracurricular activities will resume Friday, giving children a chance to reconnect with classmates.
Staff writers Lucy Morgan, Alisa Ulferts, Carrie Johnson, Jeff Harrington, Louis Hau and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
