For many 9/11 survivors, the dust is still taking its toll

NEW YORK • The Sept 11 terror attack on the World Trade Center has been remembered for the 2,753 lives lost on that horrific morning in 2001.

But that toll in New York has very likely been eclipsed by deaths from exposure to toxic pollutants in the air in the weeks and months after the collapse - and that number keeps growing.

Immediately after the twin towers fell, the roughly 90,000 firefighters, paramedics, police officers and others who rushed to the scene were hailed as heroes. But over the years, as the public's attention waned, health issues such as cancer, respiratory illnesses and other ailments, remained and have continued to emerge.

By some estimates, more than 400,000 people in lower Manhattan, including those who lived, worked and studied there, were exposed to toxic material from the pulverised towers, leading to health issues that were diagnosed many years later.

Of the 111,005 ground zero responders and survivors enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Programme, 4,610 have died, said officials at the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Although the programme does not collect information on cause of death, some health officials believe many died from 9/11-related illnesses - and that the toll is in fact higher, given the likelihood that many people have died who were not enrolled in the programme and did not know their illness was 9/11-related.

Most responders have registered for federal medical coverage and settlements. But only a small fraction of civilians affected by the toxins have done so.

Many are unaware that they are able to, or even that the illnesses they are suddenly experiencing years after 2001 may be a result of the lethal dust and smoke of the smouldering rubble where the towers stood.

"I don't think even Al-Qaeda thought this would happen," said Mr John Mormando, 54, from New Jersey, who was working as a commodities broker a few blocks from ground zero in 2001. "It was a bonus for them. They thought they killed 3,000 that day, but no one would have thought this would still be killing people."

He later underwent a double mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer, an ailment suffered by a cluster of men who spent time near ground zero.

Ms Carrie Benedict Foley's husband, Daniel, died last year at age 46 from pancreatic cancer believed to be linked to his exposure to airborne debris while he searched for survivors at ground zero, including his firefighter brother, Mr Thomas Foley, 32, whose body was found 10 days after the towers collapsed.

Ms Barbara Burnette, 58, from Queens, was a New York City police detective who helped for several weeks with recovery efforts at ground zero. Several years later, she could not walk up a flight of stairs because of the lung disease that was diagnosed in 2004. Then came lung cancer in 2017. She now uses a wheelchair and oxygen.

"We didn't even think about masks at the time," she said. "We were working so much that it didn't cross our minds we could get sick. What makes it so sad is, we would do it all again."

While aware of the toxic conditions at the time, "my mentality was, we were at war, and we initially thought we could rescue people", said Mr Tom Wilson, 52, who was a New York City police sergeant.

He helped shut down the Williamsburg Bridge on Sept 11 before spending five weeks looking for remains in the rubble at ground zero, all the while inhaling toxic dust into his lungs.

Mr Wilson, who has five children, learned he had oral cancer in 2008, which has left him plagued with chronic problems and ongoing treatments.

"Between 250 and 300 first responders are dying every year," said Mr Michael O'Connell, 45, who worked on the pile and in 2007 developed sarcoidosis, an autoimmune disease.

He retired from the New York City Fire Department in 2009 because of lung problems.

"A lot of people believed this just happened to first responders, but a lot of us went to work every day and were inhaling the same dust," said Ms Yvonne Phang, 69, an accounting professor at the Borough of Manhattan Community College several blocks from ground zero.

"In my sixth-floor classroom, my students would have to cover mouths and noses, it smelled so horrible," she said. "No one knew it could impact us that way," said Ms Phang, who had a double mastectomy for breast cancer.

Dozens of her colleagues have received diagnoses of 9/11-related illnesses, some of whom have died, she said.

Mr Martin Preston, 68, was a New York City employee who helped set up equipment at ground zero for months after Sept 11 and later developed fibrosis in his lungs as well as asthma and severe acid reflux. "It's the catastrophe that keeps on giving," he said.

NYTIMES