Yahoo: New Study Says Hurricane Maria Killed 2,975 Puerto Ricans. Congress Must Take Action.

A new study released Tuesday found that Hurricane Maria killed nearly 3,000 people in Puerto Rico. Most of those who died after the storm were poor Puerto Ricans living in hard-hit municipalities. And I ask: How many more studies and cries for help does Congress need to do something?

For nearly a year now, boricuas like me have emphasized that more people than officially reported have died as a consequence of the Category 4 storm that ravaged the island on September 20, 2017. This was based on the dogged reporting of the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo in Puerto Rico and several major news outlets, as well as what people in the island were witnessing every day.

Earlier this summer, Reps. Nydia Velázquez and Rep. Bennie Thompson introduced a bill that would create an independent commission to investigate the federal response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria, similar to the one established in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. A companion legislation was introduced by Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren.

Read the full story on Yahoo's website here.  

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