New York City Council President Zohran Mamdani announced this Tuesday that more people died from diseases related to September 11 than on the day of the attacks themselves. This revelation marks a significant moment in the struggle of survivors and victims' families for the truth about the events that followed the fall of the Twin Towers.
Mamdani also revealed that hundreds of thousands of documents will be made available to the public through a new portal. Among these documents is evidence that New York City municipal authorities were aware of the presence of toxic air in the 'Ground Zero' area, the site where the Twin Towers once stood.
This decision comes after decades of controversy over the health risks faced by rescue workers, residents, and workers in the lower Manhattan area. For months after the attacks, the air in the area was described as safe by authorities, despite the hundreds of toxic substances released by the collapse of the buildings.
The release of the documents represents a victory for advocacy groups that have long demanded transparency about what was known internally about the dangers of prolonged exposure to contaminated air in the disaster zone.
