PANAMA CITY — Within 10 days of Hurricane Katrina, Congress has passed supplemental disaster relief funding.

For Hurricane Ike and Hurricane Gustav, it took 17 days. For Hurricane Andrew, the last Category 5 storm to strike the United States, it took 34 days. For Hurricane Sandy, which sparked bitter debate in Congress, it took 74 days.

Today marks the 200th day since Hurricane Michael decimated the Florida Panhandle and still no supplemental disaster funding has been passed.

“The fact that Congress is playing politics with the Panhandle is absolutely out of control, insane, a travesty, there are probably not enough adjectives used to describe the incompetence of what that place is doing,” said Rep. Jay Trumbull, R-Panama City, said at a recent press conference in Tallahassee.

Congress left for the Easter break after failing four times to pass a supplemental disaster relief bill for the 2018 disasters, including Hurricane Michael, Hurricane Florence and the California Wildfires. The most recent attempt fell apart over negotiations about how much aid to give to Puerto Rico, still struggling to recover from Hurricane Maria in 2017.

After a two-week break, Congress will be back in session on Monday.

Local Congressman Neal Dunn’s office has been in a full court press to get some sort of relief passed, repeatedly voicing frustration with the process, calling it a political farce.

“It is shameful that the Speaker of the House and Senate Minority Leader are playing political games with the livelihoods of the many victims of 2018 disasters who are hurting across this country,” Dunn said. “I will continue to fight for disaster aid and I hope Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader Schumer will immediately support the passage of disaster relief funding.”

In a recent visit to the area, Senator Marco Rubio’s staff said the storm has been forgotten in Washington D.C. They urged people to send videos.

The storm devastated the region. It killed 49 people. It's produced more than 15 million cubic yards of debris in just Bay County, compared to the 2.5 million cubic yards of debris Hurricane Irma created across 50 counties. The estimated insured losses are more than $6 billion. And it wiped out a major military installation, Tyndall Air Force Base.

Without supplemental disaster aid passed soon, all new recovery work will halt at Tyndall, which has a $600 million annual economic impact in Bay County.

Frustrated with the lack of action by Congress, Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other U.S. Congressional leaders urging them to pass a Hurricane Michael relief package immediately.

“It is unthinkable that partisan politics and self interest have obstructed federal disaster recovery funding, especially considering the magnitude of the destruction,” Patronis wrote. “However, it seems that politics, rather than the needs of the people in the Panhandle, are driving decision making.”

Pointing out that Florida pays more in taxes to the federal government than it receives in federal monies, Patronis, enclosing his personal cell phone number, asked for leaders to come take a tour of the area, his hometown.

“The money we are requesting is ultimately the money of the hardworking taxpayers of Florida,” Patronis wrote. “It’s time to step up and show the people of Northwest Florida you believe in their worth, the worth of people and an area often overlooked, but could never be cruelly forgotten. I refuse to allow Hurricane Michael to become the ‘forgotten’ hurricane.”