Puerto Rico's government is finally acknowledging a Hurricane Maria death toll that's far closer to reality.
In the wake of last year's devastating storm, Puerto Rico said that only an estimated 64 deaths had resulted, despite every other calculation being far larger. A government report published Thursday bumps that number more than 20 times higher to 1,427 fatalities — and that's only deaths directly related to Maria's damage.
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Thursday's report, submitted by the island territory to Congress along with a request for billions more in aid, recognizes Puerto Rico's initial shortcomings and estimates hurricane damage actually cost 1,427 lives. Anywhere from 800 to 8,000 deaths also resulted from "delayed or interrupted health care" after the storm, the report guesses. These numbers are closer to actuality, the Times says, though the Puerto Rican government has commissioned George Washington University's Milken Institute of Public Health to calculate a more accurate number.
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