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11/27/03
On
November 25, an exhibit of photographs and artifacts opened
in New York that tells the story of what happened when post-9/11
recovery efforts moved from Ground Zero to the Fresh Kills
Landfill on 9/12/01.
It's
a fearful story, a story of blood, sweat, and tears, when
people and organizations came together, in New York Police
Inspector James Luongo's words, to process 1.8 million tons
of debris and 1,300 cars; to recover over 4,200 human remains;
and to positively identify over 200 people "that would
never have been identified if it wasn't for the work that's
being done by these very dedicated people."
Special
Agent Richard Marx, who headed up the FBI's Evidence Response
Team at Fresh Kills, said this about the Historical Society's
proposal to document the effort: "We normally never let
outsiders see a crime scene, let alone take photographs or
touch anything. We were a tough sell. You became part of the
team here. You have to remember we were here to find human
remains. We were so focused we didn't realize we were part
of history.
How
big was the crime scene? Huge. Here are some statistics:
- The
site covered 175 acres.
- 24
local, state, and federal agencies participated, with as
many as 1,000 workers a day
- 17,000
tons of material were processed daily.
- 55
FBI Evidence Response Teams worked the site -- over 1,000
agents -- plus FBI medics, safety officers, and other specialists.
- New
York Evidence Response Team members worked over 8,000 hours
at the site, at the morgue, and at Ground Zero -- and one,
Special Agent Gerry Fornino, personally worked over 1,818
hours at the vehicle recovery operation with the Port Authority
and NYPD.
On this
Thanksgiving celebration, we thought you might have a chance
to visit the New
York Historical Society's website, if not its exhibit
at West 77th Street and Central Park West, and remember over
your holiday meals the families and loved ones of those lost
on that horrific day in September 2001.
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