Related video: Hurricane Helene death toll in Florida “probably higher” than 15 confirmed, DeSantis says
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A total of 25 people have been reported dead due to Hurricane Helene in the state of Florida, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Pinellas County officials.
The FDLE said 14 of the deaths are in the Tampa Bay area; nine in Pinellas County, two each in Hillsborough and Manatee Counties, and one in Citrus County.
The information does not match information provided by local officials in Pinellas County, who have reported 12 deaths due to Helene.
The FDLE said the determination of whether a death is storm-related is made by local agencies and there could be discrepancies over what deaths are storm-related.
A county-by-county breakdown was provided:
BAY AREA COUNTIES
- CITRUS – 1 death reported to FDLE
- HARDEE – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
- HERNANDO – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
- HIGHLANDS – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
- HILLSBOROUGH – 2 deaths reported to FDLE
- MANATEE – 2 deaths reported to FDLE
- PASCO – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
- PINELLAS – 12 deaths reported by Pinellas County
- POLK – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
- SARASOTA – 0 deaths reported to FDLE
OTHER FLORIDA COUNTIES
- DIXIE – 1 death reported to FDLE
- DUVAL – 3 deaths reported to FDLE
- LEE – 2 deaths reported to FDLE
- MIAMI-DADE – 2 deaths reported to FDLE
On Thursday, Governor Ron DeSantis confirmed the state knew of 15 deaths and said the actual total is “probably higher” than what the state could confirm.
