NYC Releases Records Showing It Misled New Yorkers About Air Quality After 9/11

BREAKING:  New York City has released more than 170,000 pages of previously undisclosed records showing the air in lower Manhattan was not only unsafe – but also potentially deadly. And they hid it for almost 25 years! 

After decades of questions, 9/11 responders and survivors now know why the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund has paid 6,287 death claims and why the World Trade Center Health Program has found 57,044 9/11 victims have cancer.

The records show that officials had information raising serious concerns about the safety of the air around Ground Zero, even as New Yorkers were being assured it was safe to breathe and return to Lower Manhattan. The documents include air-quality reports, contamination data, and internal communications, including records concerning asbestos and other hazards. (NYC Government)

For the responders, residents, workers, students, and families who have spent years living with 9/11-related cancers and illnesses, this release is enormously significant.

They deserved the truth then. They deserve the truth now.

Troy Rosasco, partner at the 9/11 law firm of Hansen & Rosasco, states: “First, it was the federal government that told the victims the air was safe to go back to work soon after the Towers came down, which we learned was untrue. Now, we find that the City of New York was part of the cover-up too. My clients are mad as hell - and they have every right to be.”

As we approach the 25th Memorial of September 11th, this is another powerful reminder that the consequences of 9/11 did not end that day. 9/11 is still claiming victims. There is still work to be done to ensure the entire 9/11 community has access to the health care, compensation, research and support they deserve.

The "Harding Memo" was of the first official documents to be released. The newly released records, including key “Documents of Interest,” can now be viewed through New York City’s public 9/11 records portal.

25 Years Later, the Health Toll of 9/11 Continues

The attacks killed 2,977 people on September 11, 2001. But the loss of life did not end there - to this day, 9/11 is still claiming victims.

And the number of people facing serious health conditions continues to grow.

Today, the World Trade Center Health Program recognizes a wide range of 9/11-related conditions, including cancers such as prostate, skin, breast, thyroid, lung, kidney, bladder, leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma, as well as respiratory and aerodigestive conditions such as asthma, COPD, chronic cough syndrome, chronic rhinosinusitis and GERD.

For responders, survivors and families who have spent decades dealing with cancer, respiratory disease and other serious health conditions, these records are not simply historical documents. They are part of the story of how people were exposed, what officials knew and why protecting the 9/11 community remains so important today.

The attorneys at the 9/11 Law Firm of Hansen & Rosasco have been representing 9/11 victims since October 2021. Learn how to choose the Right lawyer for your 9/11 case here.