EXHIBIT 32 

Case:17-03283-LTS Doc#:4014-28 Filed:10/04/18 Entered:10/04/18 16:51:23 Desc:

Exhibit 32 Page 1 of 11
Puerto Rican Nerybelle Perez poses with a portrait of her father, World War II veteran Efrain Perez, who died after 

his ambulance was turned away from the island's largest public hospital when it had no electricity or water following 

Hurricane Maria. 

Carlos Giusti/AP 

Puerto Rico's government began complying with a court order and released partial 

records Tuesday of deaths following Hurricane Maria. The data reveal that there were 

1,427 more deaths in the last four months of 2017 than the average over the four years 

before. The new count comes as questions swirl around the official death toll and 

reports that hundreds of bodies remain unclaimed in the island's main morgue.

Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 1 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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The official death toll from Hurricane Maria stands at 64, but as early as December 

Gov. Ricardo Rossello conceded the count is inaccurate. He has said he will not raise 

the official figure until George Washington University completes a study on the data.

The order to release the records came in response to a lawsuit filed by CNN and 

Puerto Rico's Center for Investigative Journalism.

All evidence points to a higher death toll than the official count. The bodies of 307 

people remain unclaimed in a Puerto Rico morgue and in refrigerated containers, AFP 

reports, after budget cuts left the mortuary without enough staff to identify and 

remove the bodies. 

Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 2 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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In May, a Harvard University study estimated a broad range — between 800 to 8,500 

— had died for reasons related to Hurricane Maria.

The finding triggered a protest in San Juan. Puerto Ricans laid thousands of pairs of 

shoes outside the island's Capitol building to represent the uncounted dead. NPR's 

Adrian Florido reported that one man placed his own shoes at the memorial to 

represent his father, whose body was found in his house two weeks after the 

hurricane:

"For many in Puerto Rico — and especially for families of hurricane victims — the fact 

that the government's official tally of the dead remains at 64 more than eight months 

after the hurricane feels like an insult. They say it's a testament to how dismissive the 

government has been of their need to have the deaths of their loved ones 

acknowledged.

A complicating factor in calculating Puerto Rico's true casualty count is that 

government agencies do not have a standard for how to define a storm-related death. 

For example, the AP reports the National Hurricane Center only counts "direct 

deaths" - such as a person killed by a fallen tree or flooding - and not "indirect deaths" 

as in a person who perished from lack of electricity to operate an oxygen mask.

Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., sponsored bills 

Monday to fund a $2 million study by the National Academy of Medicine on how best 

to tally the number of people killed by a disaster.

"The government failed Puerto Rico at every level in the wake of Hurricane Maria," 

Harris wrote.

Kamala Harris

@SenKamalaHarris

The government failed Puerto Rico at every level in the wake of 

Hurricane Maria – including in getting an accurate death toll. Today, 

I introduced a bill to establish federal procedures for counting 

fatalities after natural disasters. This can’t ever happen again.

1:56 PM - Jun 11, 2018 

Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 3 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Exhibit 32 Page 4 of 11
Repairs on the island continue some nine months after the storm hit. Thousands still 

do not have power after the hurricane devastated Puerto Rico's grid and many homes 

have blue tarps in place of roofs that were blown off during Maria.

The 2018 hurricane season began on June 1. NPR's Florido reports that FEMA has 

stockpiled food, tarps and water in warehouses in Puerto Rico to avoid some of the 

roadblocks that delayed aid after Hurricane Maria struck on September 20, 2017.

Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 4 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 5 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 6 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 7 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 8 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Exhibit 32 Page 9 of 11
Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 9 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

Case:17-03283-LTS Doc#:4014-28 Filed:10/04/18 Entered:10/04/18 16:51:23 Desc:

Exhibit 32 Page 10 of 11
Puerto Rico Releases Data On Hundreds Of Deaths Following Hurricane Maria : NPR Page 10 of 10

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/13/619440877/puerto-rico-releases-data-on-hundreds-of-deat... 8/22/2018

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Exhibit 32 Page 11 of 11