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Puerto Rico increases Hurricane Maria death toll to 2,975
Officials in Puerto Rico now say 2,975 people died following Hurricane Maria - a devastating storm that struck the US island territory in September 2017. The revised death toll is nearly 50 times the previous estimate of 64.
Governor Ricardo Rossello "accepted" the findings in a long-awaited independent investigation. The mayor of the capital, San Juan, accused the US government of deliberately downplaying the impact of the storm.
Puerto Rico has struggled to repair its infrastructure and power grid since the storm, and is asking US Congress for $139bn (£108bn) in recovery funds.
[...] The government's initial number was for those killed directly by the hurricane, crushed by collapsing buildings, drowned or hit by flying debris.
But the new report also counted those who died in the six months following the storm as a result of poor healthcare provision and a lack of electricity and clean water. Repeated power cuts also led to an increased number of deaths from diabetes and sepsis.
George Washington University (GWU) report: Ascertainment of the Estimated Excess Mortality from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico
Previously: Puerto Rican Death Toll From Hurricane Maria May be Many Times Higher Than Official Estimate
(Score: 2) by NewNic on Wednesday August 29 2018, @08:15PM (1 child)
How much was spent helping the residents of Texas that were affected by Harvey?
How much money is spent subsidizing flood insurance so that people can live in flood plains?
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 1, Offtopic) by realDonaldTrump on Thursday August 30 2018, @12:15AM
Money was never a big motivation for me, except as a way to keep score. I'll tell you, I gave ONE MILLION DOLLARS of my own money to charities for Hurricane Harvey. Red Cross, Salvation Army. Reach Out America -- so many.
I visited Houston -- they love me in Houston. I gave them the food they needed. Great people, great time.
We used to have the greatest infrastructure anywhere in the world, and today we’re like a third-world country. So I did the repeal of Obama's VERY FOOLISH Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. No longer will we allow the infrastructure of our magnificent country to crumble and decay because of bad environmental laws. We're going to build much more quickly. Very very quick. It’s going to be a very streamlined process, and by the way, if it doesn’t meet environmental safeguards, we’re not going to approve it.