Bam tremor toll revised upward to 31,000

Iran Focus: Paris – Iran on Wednesday revised upwards to 31,000 from an earlier estimate of 26,000 the number of people killed in a devastating tremor in the southern Iranian city of Bam last December.
“Based on the latest statistics, 30,948 were killed in the catastrophic disaster in Bam,” Kerman Governor General Mohammad Ali Karimi was quoted by the official IRNA news agency as saying. Iran Focus

Paris, Sep 2 – Iran on Wednesday revised upwards to 31,000 from an earlier estimate of 26,000 the number of people killed in a devastating tremor in the southern Iranian city of Bam last December.

“Based on the latest statistics, 30,948 were killed in the catastrophic disaster in Bam,” Kerman Governor General Mohammad Ali Karimi was quoted by the official IRNA news agency as saying.

Officials have repeatedly changed the death toll. Many observers believe that the actual figure was around 70,000. Initially, the government said over 50,000 had perished, but dramatically reduced the figure to 26,000 fearing reprisals in the Province.