Survey Indicates Hurricane Michael Victims Forgotten In Florida Panhandle

PANAMA CITY (CBSMiami/AP) — Life has not been easy for those impacted by Hurricane Michael in the Florida Panhandle.

A survey of Floridians is reinforcing the belief among victims of Hurricane Michael that they've been forgotten as they continue their recovery efforts eight months after the Category 5 storm made landfall.

According to the survey of 1,000 Floridians released Wednesday, almost half of respondents said they had no plans to do anything to help victims recover when asked if they would donate money, volunteer time or visit the Panhandle.

The survey says 2 in 5 Floridians believe mistakenly that life has returned to normal in the Panhandle.

The survey was conducted June 7 to June 11 on behalf of Rebuild 850, a coalition of groups dedicated to rebuilding the Panhandle. The online survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Separately, the U.S. Department of Education said Wednesday that it would award a $1.5 million grant to the county hardest hit by Hurricane Michael to pay for mental health workers in schools.

The department said in a news release that the grant for Bay District Schools would pay for social workers and counselors at each school to help students traumatized by the storm.

(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)