I've just had a quick listen to Crossing Continents on the BBC. A written report by David Shukman can be found here. The discussion concerns the after-effects of 9/11 for people working in the area of the Twin Towers.
The toxicity was extreme because of the burning of two enormous skyscrapers, including masses of electronic equipment, light bulbs (a source of mercury) and many other poisons. Plastics and very heavy metals burning at very high temperatures. Over 18,000 people are thought to be suffering ill effects.
Interestingly, although evidence clearly shows a reduction in lung function in over 12,000 people New York authorities have been slow to accept the possibility that fatalities might also have resulted from the dust. The first death recorded by a New Jersey pathologist as a result of exposure to World Trade Centre dust resulted in the Zadroga Act (named after the deceased), which allowed compensation to be paid to people suffering the effects of the dust.
According to this version of the story New York authorities are struggling to admit a link between cancers and World Trade Centre dust, even in people exposed to the area around Ground Zero following the disaster.
This is in a city that has banned smoking in all its beaches and parks. Its officials think there may be no link between the exposure to acrid dust and cancer. It's funny when people notice a correlation between working in the streets of Lower Manhattan in late 2001 and getting very ill a few weeks later, the official line is that there is no definite link. Yet if someone lights up a little bit of weed and some very thin paper, officials will try and persuade people for years that they are being made very very ill by it.
For the record, Mr Zadroga's death was recorded as the result of World Trade Centre dust, on the death certificate.
2 comments:
At least Mr Zadroga's death certificate cites the reason for his death. More than can be said for the missing millions of death certificates that state second hand smoke as a cause of death.
Or are there any ?
Watched a documentary at the weekend about the Zadroga Act. Months after the dust had settled an eminant doctor was assigned to look into the possibility that dust was making people ill as hospital admissions rocketed. The doctor said he was sceptical that the dust was causing many lung complaints but within weeks he was convinced without a shadow of a doubt that the trade centre dust WAS the cause.
The anti smokers in NY are full of bull****!
Post a Comment