How 9/11 is still killing one person a day 25 years later

The lasting impact and legacy of the attacks

On this day, a quarter of a century ago, four commercial planes were hijacked, two of which were flown into the Twin Towers in New York, another into the Pentagon and one was crashed into a field in Pennsylvania following a fight with passengers.

Initially, a total of 2,603 victims were confirmed to have been killed at the World Trade Center site, however, after 2007, this number was increased in line with people who died from toxic dust.

The current death toll sits at 2,977, although in reality this number is likely much higher when deaths related to the attacks are included.

The official 9/11 death toll sits at 2,977 people. Image: Getty.

That's because the toxic dust was full of chemicals such as deadly asbestos which was found widely spread throughout the area around Ground Zero due to the collapsed towers.

Other particles found in the dust included lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, crushed concrete, glass fibres, silica and burning synthetic materials.

Estimates suggest that almost 10,000 people have died due to 9/11-related illnesses, about one a day since the attacks.

The Centers for Disease Control and World Trade Center Health Program estimate that more than 400,000 people were exposed to 352 chemical agents in the dust which led to 49,000 cases of cancers in first-responders and survivors.

A firefighter in New York. Image: Getty.

First responder, and founder of the FealGood Foundation, John Feal told The Mirror: “But it’s many more people than that - they’re only the ones we know about.

"And the numbers are only going to get much worse. This is going to go on for decades at least.

“9/11 is still killing. It's the longest day in the history of days. People are being killed today as a result of what happened on 9/11.”

Survivors have long fought for justice in the wake of the attacks, with a section of the 9/11 Memorial and Museum dedicated to those affected by the dust.

Many point towards statements made by the Environmental Protection Agency on behalf of the White House in the days after the attacks which told the public the air was safe to breathe in an attempt to show America's defiance.

Campaigners believe that this alone could have contributed to a huge number of deaths.

Only days ago, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani released 170,000 pages of records detailing health and air quality concerns - as well as a previously unseen memo from October 2001 which showed that city officials knew about the potential risks around Ground Zero.

Mamdani said: “People got sick because the leaders they trusted lied and told them they were safe to breathe in toxic air.

“And then, when they began to contend with the symptoms of the illnesses that followed, the government that had not hesitated to send them into harm’s way was nowhere to be found. 

"These are documents that show what the city knew about toxic air around Ground Zero, when they knew it and how they acted to limit liability.”

While there exist many poignant memorials and tributes to the victims of 9/11, not all add names on each year like the one organised by John Feal at Nesconset Park on Long Island.

It featured 400 names when it opened in 2011 and now has thousands of names on it, with another 345 set to be added this year.

Feal, who runs the FealGood Foundation, told The Mirror: “We always add more names to it on the first Saturday after 9/11.

John Feal continues to campaign for the victims of 9/11-related deaths. Image: Getty.

“This year there will be another 345 names engraved onto that wall. We know that 345 people died in the past 12 months from illnesses directly related to 9/11 and there will be many more that we have not been made aware of.

"Since 9/11 over 9,500 people have died from cancers, sarcoidosis and other diseases and illnesses from breathing in toxic dust of 9/11.“