September 11 attacks Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Health issues === {{Main|Health effects arising from the September 11 attacks}} [[File:Dust covered 911 victims.jpg|thumb|Survivors covered in dust after the collapse of the [[World Trade Center (1973β2001)|World Trade towers]]. A photograph of another dust-covered victim [[Marcy Borders]] (1973β2015) subsequently gained much attention.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-11 |title=The tragic story of 'Dust Lady' and other 9/11 survivors with fatal health problems |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/marcy-borders-dust-lady-911-b1916365.html |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Pilkington |first=Ed |date=2015-09-21 |title=9/11 'Dust Lady' Marcy Borders: depression, rehab, back from the brink β then a final bombshell |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/sep/21/911-dust-lady-marcy-borders-depression-rehab-back-from-the-brink-then-a-final-bombshell |access-date=2023-09-27 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>]] Hundreds of thousands of tons of toxic debris containing more than 2,500 contaminants and known carcinogens were spread across Lower Manhattan when the Twin Towers' collapsed.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gates |first=Anita |title=Buildings Rise from Rubble while Health Crumbles |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/11/arts/television/11dust.html |work=The New York Times |date=September 11, 2006 |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2006/09/05/nyregion/20060905_HEALTH_GRAPHIC.html |title=What was Found in the Dust |work=The New York Times |date=September 5, 2006|access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> Exposure to the toxins in the debris is alleged to have contributed to [[Health effects arising from the September 11 attacks|fatal or debilitating illnesses]] among people who were at Ground Zero.<ref name="CNN 2007-05-24">{{cite news|title=New York: 9/11 toxins caused death|publisher=CNN|date=May 24, 2007|url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/24/wtc.dust/index.html|access-date=September 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070618154824/http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/24/wtc.dust/index.html |archive-date=June 18, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/13/nyregion/13symptoms.html |title=Tracing Lung Ailments That Rose With 9/11 Dust |last=DePalma |first=Anthony |date=May 13, 2006|work=The New York Times |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> The Bush administration ordered the [[Environmental Protection Agency]] (EPA) to issue reassuring statements regarding air quality in the aftermath of the attacks, citing national security, but the EPA did not determine that air quality had returned to pre-September 11 levels until June 2002.<ref>{{cite news|last=Heilprin |first=John |title=White House edited EPA's 9/11 reports |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=June 23, 2003 |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/default/article/White-House-edited-EPA-s-9-11-reports-1122465.php |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> Health effects extended to residents, students, and office workers of Lower Manhattan and nearby [[Chinatown, Manhattan|Chinatown]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Updated Ground Zero Report Examines Failure of Government to Protect Citizens |publisher=Sierra Club |year=2006 |url=http://www.sierraclub.org/groundzero/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611191219/http://www.sierraclub.org/groundzero/ |archive-date=June 11, 2010 |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> Several deaths have been linked to the toxic dust, and victims' names were included in the World Trade Center memorial.<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Stephen |title=9/11 "Wall of Heroes" To Include Sick Cops |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/04/28/national/main4049362.shtml |publisher=CBS News |date=April 28, 2008 |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> Approximately 18,000 people have been estimated to have developed illnesses as a result of the toxic dust.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shukman |first=David |title=Toxic dust legacy of 9/11 plagues thousands of people |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14738140 |publisher=BBC News |date=September 1, 2011|access-date=September 11, 2011}}</ref> There is also scientific speculation that exposure to various toxic products in the air may have negative effects on fetal development.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}} A study of rescue workers released in April 2010 found that all those studied had impaired lung functions and that 30%β40% were reporting little or no improvement in persistent symptoms that started within the first year of the attack.<ref>{{cite news|last=Grady|first=Denise|title=Lung Function of 9/11 Rescuers Fell, Study Finds|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/08/nyregion/08lung.html|access-date=September 4, 2011|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 7, 2010}}</ref> Years after the attacks, legal disputes over the costs of illnesses related to the attacks were still in the court system. On October 17, 2006, a federal judge rejected New York City's refusal to pay for health costs for rescue workers, allowing for the possibility of numerous suits against the city.<ref>{{cite news |first=Anthony |last=DePalma |title=Many Ground Zero Workers Gain Chance at Lawsuits |work=The New York Times |date=October 18, 2006 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/18/nyregion/nyregionspecial3/18toxic.html |access-date=September 4, 2011}}</ref> Government officials have been faulted for urging the public to return to lower Manhattan in the weeks shortly after the attacks. Christine Todd Whitman, administrator of the EPA in the attacks' aftermath, was heavily criticized by a U.S. District Judge for incorrectly saying that the area was environmentally safe.<ref>{{cite news|first=Larry |last=Neumeister |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2006/02/02/national/a142556S81.DTL |title=Judge Slams Ex-EPA Chief Over Sept. 11 |agency=Associated Press |work=San Francisco Chronicle |date=February 2, 2006 |access-date=September 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080524084609/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=%2Fn%2Fa%2F2006%2F02%2F02%2Fnational%2Fa142556S81.DTL |archive-date=May 24, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Mayor Giuliani was criticized for urging financial industry personnel to return quickly to the greater [[Wall Street]] area.<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Ben |title=Rudy's black cloud. WTC health risks may hurt Prez bid |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/rudy-black-cloud-wtc-health-risks-hurt-prez-bid-article-1.618126 |work=New York Daily News |date=September 18, 2006 |access-date=May 29, 2014}}</ref> On December 22, 2010, the [[United States Congress]] passed the [[James L. Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act]], which President [[Barack Obama]] signed into law on January 2, 2011. It allocated $4.2{{spaces}}billion to create the [[World Trade Center Health Program]], which provides testing and treatment for people suffering from long-term health problems related to the 9/11 attacks.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/12/20/new.york.9.11.bill/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |title=Bloomberg urges passage of 9/11 health bill |date=December 20, 2010}}</ref><ref name="WTCHP faq">{{cite web|title=World Trade Center Health Program FAQ|url=https://www.cdc.gov/wtc/faq.html|publisher=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention|access-date=July 2, 2012}}</ref> The WTC Health Program replaced preexisting 9/11-related health programs such as the Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program and the WTC Environmental Health Center program.<ref name="WTCHP faq" /> In 2020, the NYPD confirmed that 247 NYPD police officers had died due to 9/11-related illnesses. In September 2022, the FDNY confirmed that the total number of firefighters who died due to 9/11-related illnesses was 299. Both agencies believe that the death toll will rise dramatically in the coming years. The [[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department]] (PAPD), the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the World Trade Center due to the [[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]] owning the site confirmed that four of its police officers have died of 9/11-related illnesses. The chief of the PAPD at the time, Joseph Morris, made sure that industrial-grade respirators were provided to all PAPD police officers within 48 hours and decided that the same 30 to 40 police officers would be stationed at the World Trade Center pile, drastically lowering the number of total PAPD personnel who would be exposed to the air. The FDNY and NYPD had rotated hundreds, if not thousands, of different personnel from all over New York City to the pile, which exposed many of them to dust that would give them cancer or other diseases years or decades later. Also, they were not given adequate respirators and breathing equipment that could have prevented future diseases.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/nypd/about/memorials/9-11-tribute.page |title=9/11 Tribute |publisher=NYPD |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/fdny/news/022-22/fdny-adds-37-names-memorial-wall-deaths-related-world-trade-center-illnesses |title=FDNY Adds 37 Names to Memorial Wall for Deaths Related to World Trade Center Illnesses|website=www1.nyc.gov |date=September 13, 2022|access-date=19 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thechiefleader.com/stories/port-authority-police-union-leader-still-pain-for-families-of-911-cops-free-article,6828 |title=Port Authority Police-Union Leader: Still Pain for Families of 9/11 Cops (Free Article)|website=The Chief Leader |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/september-11/ny-9-11-port-authority-police-saved-lives-20210906-gtmdsurzt5fjxaqhp6bdiq3x3q-story.html |title=Swift action on 9/11 by NYC's Port Authority police saved lives|website=New York Daily News |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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