WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th August, 2018) Researchers have determined that approximately 2,975 people died in Puerto Rico between September 2017 and February 2018 due to Hurricane Maria, the George Washington University Milken Institute school of Public Health said in a press release on Tuesday.
"In an independent report published today, researchers at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health (GW Milken Institute SPH) estimated there were 2,975 excess deaths in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria from September 2017 through the end of February 2018," the release said.
The research team analyzed death certificates and mortality data for six months in order to compare the total number of deaths to what would be expected in a year without a hurricane in order to come up with their data, the release said.
Lack of communication, established guidelines, and training for physicians on how to certify deaths in disasters resulted in only 64 deaths originally being categorized as hurricane-related, the release added.
Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm on September 20, causing extensive damage to the island's infrastructure and electrical grid.
