Report: Hurricane Maria Death Toll In Puerto Rico Is Far Higher Than Reported

New data reveals the death toll in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria is much higher than the official tally.

A review by The New York Times of the death toll indicates a significantly higher number than what the government on the island officially reported.

According the the Times report, 42 days after Hurricane Maria struck on Sept 20th the total death toll was 1052 more people than usual died across the island.

Puerto Rican officials reported only 62 people died as a result of the category 4 storm that left 3.4 million Puerto Ricans without power.

The director of Puerto Rico's demographic registry told the Times that the average number of deaths daily in the territory was 82 before the hurricane hit, but is now 118.

In late october the Puerto Rican government reported 911 people had died of “natural causes” since Maria, but that these deaths weren’t related to the hurricane.

The bodies were cremated before any medical examinations could be done to verify the cause of death.