Eight elderly patients died on Wednesday after being left inside a stifling South Florida Nursing Home that lost power during Hurricane Irma. The incident prompted a criminal investigation as it added a tragic new dimension to mounting loss of life from the storm.

Officials continued to assess damage inflicted by Irma with overall death toll from Irma climbed to 81 on Wednesday. More than half of the number was recorded in the Carribean. The power losses from the storm had fatal consequences at the rehabilitation center at Hollywood Hill, a nursing home in Hollywood, Florida, North of Miami.

Three elderly residents were found dead on Wednesday inside the sweltering facility, which had been left without air conditioning, officials said. Five more patients from the nursing home later died at a nearby hospital, they said.

(Beverly Sayson / UNTV Correspondent)

Tags: elderly patients, Florida Nursing Home, hurricane Irma