Three retired FDNY firefighters died in a fatal coincidence this past Memorial Day weekend, due to illnesses related to their work in the rescue and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center (WTC) following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. .
“In the days leading up to the 20th anniversary of the end of recovery efforts at ground zero, three FDNY firefighters lost their battles with World Trade Center-related illnesses,” announced Andrew Ansbro, president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association (UFA). ).
The new victims were Robert J. Reynolds, John J. McCauley and Michael Verzi. “Terrorist attacks and the resulting recovery operation continue to claim the lives of many New York City firefighters who responded to the call that day and in the months that followed,” Ansbro said.
Retired firefighter Reynolds, who served in the FDNY for 20 years, succumbed to his WTC-related illness on Saturday. Supervising Fire Chief McCauley followed him on Sunday for a similar, unlisted cause, the department said. That same day Verzi died.
“For many New Yorkers, those horrible days are long gone, but for those of us who lived through it, we continue to lose friends and family, and we will continue to care for those who have fallen ill.”
Andrew Ansbro, President of the Uniformed Firefighters Association (UFA)
“We will never forget Firefighter Robert Reynolds, Firefighter Michael Verzi and Supervising Fire Chief Jack McCauley, who were taken from us too soon,” Ansbro said. “For many New Yorkers, those horrible days are long gone, but for those of us who lived through it, we continue to lose friends and family, and we will continue to care for those who have fallen ill.”
The FDNY was the hardest-hit first responder group on Sept. 11, 2001, losing 343 members at the WTC site and 253 later dying of related illnesses, union leaders told The Associated Press. New York Post last year.
Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania, in the worst terrorist attack in US history. Only 60% of the fatalities of that day have been identified. And several more have died or reported illnesses in subsequent years, as a result of the events.
The collapse of the WTC sent a thick dust cloud over Lower Manhattan and there were fires for weeks. Thousands of construction workers, police officers, firefighters, volunteers and others spent time working in the soot, often without proper respiratory protection.
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