World Trade Center environmental data report, 2001-2002

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

other dogs living in the area. One famous rescue dog, “Bear,” died. “A lot of dogs have gotten cancer and died,” she adds, recalling her own dog Rigsby’s death.

Pregnant women exposed to air pollution from the World Trade Center attacks, according to a preliminary study released in August 2003, apparently face double the risk of delivering babies up to a half-pound smaller than babies bom to women not thus exposed. And other studies that have come out in the time since the terrorist attacks show that workers continue to suffer pulmonary problems.

Hazards thought to be negligible at one time, in some quarters, are turning out to have long- lasting effects. The New York City Fire Department reported that a year since the terrorist attacks, several hundred members were still suffering from respiratory problems. Even firefighters who answered the call to assist in the recovery effort from across the country returned home with lasting pulmonary and other medical problems.

“We’re still hearing about people being sick,” says Anthony Sutton, director of emergency management in Westchester County, N.Y., just north of the city. “There are a lot of stories.”

probably would not still be discussing many of the issues [still being raised] had a vigorous and proactive risk communication strategy been implemented following 9/11.”

Ohio Senator George V. Voinovich, at a hearing on the EPA and FEMA response to September 11, expressed outrage when the Ohio Task Force of the Urban Search and Rescue teams told him how badly afflicted firefighters were. “I am outraged that no one seems to be managing the effort to provide information and health care to these workers,” said Sen. Voinovich. “The Captain of the Ohio Task Force told me last week that if I could figure out who was in charge of disseminating health data then I should be President!” (22)

Kelly McKinney defends his Department of Health, saying that it brought in as much expertise as it could. “The range and magnitude of technical expertise brought to bear on health and safety issues at Groimd Zero was imprecedented, and I believe, fully sufficient to the task.”

However, he admits that “we probably would not still be discussing many of the issues [still being raised] had a vigorous and proactive risk commimication strategy been implemented following 9/11.”

Officials acted like technicians, “talking too much with each other and not enough with everyone else,” he says. “We acted like research scientists with our heads buried in the data discussing technical details among ourselves instead of talking, and listening, to the concerned public. We did not immediately speak to the real health effects that workers, residents and others were experiencing. We were probably more arrogant than was justified by the data and over confident about what the results meant. We practiced good science but bad humility, and bad empathy and bad communications.”

“Having said all that would I change our basic recommendations and conclusions about these issues? Probably not.”

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