Norwegian police lower death toll in massacre

July 26, 2011



Norwegian police have revised their estimate of total deaths in Friday's attacks on and, now reporting that an estimated total of 76 people were killed, rather than the 93 previously reported. Of these, 68 were in Utøya and eight were from the bombing in Oslo. The police have not yet been willing to give a final figure for the death toll.

"This figure could still go up," said National Police Commissioner Oeystein Maeland. "The search [for bodies] is ongoing."

Previously significantly higher death tolls had been reported from the shootings on the island of Utøya, but were revised downwards. Maeland explained that the situation on Friday was "chaotic" and that some bodies may have been counted twice as police focused on helping the injured.

Meanwhile the toll from the bombing in the centre of Oslo that took place hours earlier was revised upwards from seven to eight.