During the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and in the months that followed, hundreds of thousands of people in the New York City Disaster Zone, the Pentagon in Washington, DC, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania suffered physical and emotional harm, and were exposed to a multitude of contaminants. The Hispanic Federation collaborates with a federal health program in locating these affected people, so that they receive free medical attention.
In Lower Manhattan and a portion of Brooklyn, these pollutants persisted for many months after the attack on the Twin Towers. In a growing number of cases, the effects of these traumas and poisoning are starting to show up now, almost 22 years after the attacks.
“In response to the terrible effects of 9-11, Congress created the World Trade Center Health Program,” he explains. jonathan rodriguez, Health Programs Coordinator of the Hispanic Federation. “The program offers monitoring and treatment services for health conditions related to terrorist attacks, which have been verified by medical personnel certified by the program.”
It is estimated that on September 11 there were some 400,000 people in what would later be known as the Disaster Zone, in Lower Manhattan. Of those, some 120,000 have received care from the Program to date. These are people who lived or worked in that part of the city between September 11, 2001 and July 31, 2002, or who attended schools, day care centers or senior centers. Or that they worked in the Disaster Zone.
“The program”, add Jonathan, “covers a wide range of conditions, such as acute and traumatic injuries, digestive and respiratory disorders, various types of cancer, mental health problems, and muscle or bone disorders.”
It is also worth mentioning that the exposure to highly polluting products that affected those who lived or worked in the disaster area until long after the attack caused very different types of cancer. Among them, blood and lymphoid tissue, head and neck, skin, breast, prostate, and childhood cancers.
“And we must not forget about mental health,” he adds Jonathan. “The terrorist attack was a very traumatizing episode that affected and still affects the mood, thoughts and behavior of many people. Some examples of these conditions are anxiety and acute stress disorders, adjustment disorders, major depression, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance use disorders.”
The attack on the Twin Towers and its consequences touched and touch our community very closely. Nearly one in ten of the more than 2,700 9/11 fatalities was someone of Latino origin. Our community lost 177 men and 81 women that day.
For more information and help from the World Trade Center Health Program, call our toll-free, bilingual hotline at (844) 432-9832.
And to learn more about the Hispanic Federation, visit www.hispanicfederation.org or find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Celebrate our 33rd anniversary with us, and see you in the next column!
Frankie Miranda is the president of the Hispanic Federation
