By Patrick Rupinen, Staff Writer
In the popular history told about 9/11, one group of New York civil servants is often overlooked. The Department of Sanitation (DSNY) has lost over 145 members to 9/11-related illness.
DSNY played a major role in the cleanup and recovery in the aftermath of the attacks in New York. DSNY is the department who powered all the equipment at ground zero for multiple weeks while also providing 40% of the trucking at ground zero.
They helped to remove heavy steel beams and debris to the Fresh Kills Landfill where the NYPD and FBI were to do forensics. The DSNY was there at ground zero helping to pull bodies out of the rubble.
While everyone knows about the toxic cloud of dust and wreckage that fell on lower Manhattan when the buildings collapsed, few think about who cleaned it up. This became the duty of DSNY, who were sent to clean up lower Manhattan.
While they were doing this, they were forced to inhale toxic dust composed of asbestos and crushed concrete and were at risk of being injured by falling glass from damaged windows.
The DSNY was down in the rubble searching for bodies among the wreckage. Families were able to get closure because of the first responders who were down in the rubble searching for remains.
It is hard to state how mentally taxing this job was for the workers. Most of the bodies that were pulled from the rubble would have been mangled from the collapse of the buildings and the DSNY worker were pulling arms and legs from the rubble.
The biggest job was the removal of all the debris from ground zero to the Fresh Kills Landfill. They were down in ground zero filling buckets with debris and hauling out steel beams and massive hunks of concrete and rebar.
It is also important to remember that the DSNY spent months down at the rubble pile helping to remove debris that were to be sorted through at the Fresh Kills Landfill. Everyday spent removing rubble increased the risk for cancer and illness.
Staff Writer Patrick Rupinen acknowledges the importance of New York City’s department of transportation in the aftermath of 9/11, and the health complications years after the clean-up.
The DSNY has faced 9/11 related illnesses like all the other first responders who where down at ground zero.
The difference between those in the DSNY and the other first responders is that they have not received nearly the same amount of attention from the press.
The DSNY has lost 100+ members to 9/11-related illnesses. Families of those who have died do not receive the same benefits given to firefighter and police.
It is ridiculous that DSNY does not receive the same number of benefits as the groups who responded to ground zero.
The sacrifice of DSNY needs to be recognized by the larger public as they played a major role in the cleanup of ground zero and lower Manhattan.
New York’s strongest helped to quickly get the city back up and running after the attacks. DSNY helped to quickly clean up the financial district allowing Wall Street to quickly open back up after the attacks.
The DSNY should receive more attention for their hard work after the attacks and the losses that they have faced from 9/11 related illnesses. The sacrifices they made for the city of New York should be remembered.