AUSTIN (Nexstar) — At least 57 people across Texas died during the winter storms that left millions in the dark, without heat and water last month.
According to preliminary data compiled by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) the majority of the deaths were associated with hypothermia.
“There have also been multiple deaths caused by motor vehicle accidents, carbon monoxide poisoning, medical equipment failure, falls, and fire,” a DSHS update revealed.
The tracked deaths occurred between Feb. 11 and March 5.
Harris County led Texas with 25 storm-related deaths tallied by the state.
Based on information provided on the DSHS website, there are three main ways DSHS is notified of disaster-related deaths:
- Medical certifiers submit a DSHS form specifying that a particular death was related to a disaster.
- Medical certifiers flag a death record as disaster related.
- DSHS epidemiologists match public reports of disaster-related deaths to death certificates.
State disaster epidemiologists “continue to reconcile information about causes of death,” the agency indicated. DSHS updates the information weekly.
You can use the map below to see which Texas counties have winter storm-related deaths recorded.
