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There were 2,975 deaths in Puerto Rico that came as a result of Hurricane Maria. That’s a number that came out of Puerto Rico’s government after it commissioned a study by George Washington University.

However, that figure wasn’t good enough for U.S. President Donald Trump. So what is? Apparently, the word of Fox News personality Geraldo Rivera.

WATCH: Trump denies 3,000 Puerto Ricans died due to Hurricane Maria, blames Democrats

1:41 Trump denies 3,000 Puerto Ricans died due to Hurricane Maria, blames Democrats Trump denies 3,000 Puerto Ricans died due to Hurricane Maria, blames Democrats

On Friday night, Trump tweeted a quote from Rivera in which the broadcaster cast skepticism on the official death count in Puerto Rico.

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In the tweet, Trump quoted Rivera saying, “They say all these people died in the storm in Puerto Rico, yet 70 per cent of the power was out before the storm. So when did people start dying?”

“They say all these people died in the storm in Puerto Rico, yet 70% of the power was out before the storm. So when did people start dying? At what point do you recognize that what they are doing is a political agenda couched in the nice language of journalism?” @GeraldoRivera — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 14, 2018

Rivera uttered the comments on an episode of Fox News show The Five that aired on Friday.

“When was it on Hurricane Maria that the people started [dying], was it when the power went out?

“I was there a long time, there was a transformer fire and the power went out, when they started dying then?”

“I mean, at what point do you recognize that what they’re doing is a political agenda, couched in the nice language of journalism?”

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Rivera’s figure about power outages didn’t mesh with one reported by the Los Angeles Times.

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That report, while acknowledging that Puerto Rico’s power system was on “life support” before the hurricane, also said that approximately 96 per cent of residents had power restored to them after Hurricane Irma hit before Maria.

How a study came up with an estimate of deaths

The estimate of 3,000 dead in Puerto Rico originates in a report by the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University.

That study was commissioned by Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello as an independent assessment of mortality that came as a result of Hurricane Maria.

Death figures were estimated by looking at mortality between September 2017 and February 2018, as well as modelling data for population trends, emigration and displacement.

General view of a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 23, 2017. EPA/Thais Llorca via AP

It found that “total excess mortality post-hurricane” using the “migration displacement scenario” was estimated at 2,975 between September 2017 and February 2018.

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There was a higher and more persistent risk of death for people living in “low socioeconomic development municipalities” while men aged 65 and over “experienced continuous elevated risk of death through February.”

Other groups approached the “baseline mortality risk at two and four months post-hurricane.”

Nevertheless, the president distrusted these figures in a series of tweets on Thursday.

3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000… — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2018

…..This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico. If a person died for any reason, like old age, just add them onto the list. Bad politics. I love Puerto Rico! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2018

Trump blamed the Democrats, but as CNN noted, initial estimates of six to 13 deaths came from Puerto Rico’s public safety director, reporting figures provided by mayors.

Those figures had not been confirmed by law enforcement, however.

The official death toll later grew to 64, a figure that included “indirect deaths” connected to the hurricane.

They would continue to grow with a series of studies.

On Friday night, Trump defended his dismissal of the 3,000 figure in a series of tweets.

“When Trump visited the island territory last October, OFFICIALS told him in a briefing 16 PEOPLE had died from Maria.” The Washington Post. This was long AFTER the hurricane took place. Over many months it went to 64 PEOPLE. Then, like magic, “3000 PEOPLE KILLED.” They hired…. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2018

….GWU Research to tell them how many people had died in Puerto Rico (how would they not know this?). This method was never done with previous hurricanes because other jurisdictions know how many people were killed. FIFTY TIMES LAST ORIGINAL NUMBER – NO WAY! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2018