Bone Fragments Found Near WTC Said Human

Bone Fragments Found Near WTC Said Human

Bone Fragments Found Near WTC Said Human
- By AMY WESTFELDT, Associated Press Writer
Friday, October 28, 2005


(10-28) 22:50 PDT New York (AP) --


Ten bone fragments discovered more than four years after the World Trade Center attacks on the rooftop of a nearby skyscraper are human, officials said Friday.


The pieces of bone, ranging in size from half an inch to two inches, were found on three days last month by construction workers sifting through gravel on top of the former Deutsche Bank building, officials said.


Parts of the trade center's south tower carved a huge gash in the 41-story building's facade when it collapsed on Sept. 11, 2001. Deconstruction of the building, which is known to be contaminated with asbestos, lead, and trade center dust, began in September.


The city medical examiner will try to identify the remains by extracting DNA and checking it against a database of World Trade Center victims, said medical examiner's spokeswoman Ellen Borakove.


"We're hoping to be able to create some profiles," she said.


Borakove said test results returned last week indicated the fragments were human. She said it was too soon too tell whether the remains came from one person or more than one.


The city has recovered 19,964 pieces of human remains from the trade center attack and identified 9,100 of them, Borakove said. Of the 2,749 people who died at the trade center, 1,152 victims have no identifiable remains.


The medical examiner's office has said that more sophisticated DNA technology may someday develop to help identify the remains. Until then, they will remain in city custody and will eventually be encased at the trade center memorial.


Mary Fetchet, whose son, Brad, died at the south tower of the trade center, said Friday the discovery reopens old wounds.


"It's just a reminder of the horrific nature of the event," said Fetchet. "When you talk about identification of bone fragments, it just brings you back to what really happened that day."


The former Deutsche Bank building was purchased by the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. last year and is scheduled to be completely dismantled in 2007.

LMDC president Stefan Pryor said that after construction workers found the fragments, "our rigorous protocols automatically assume findings of this nature to be human remains and therefore require that they be treated with the utmost care, dignity, and respect."

The city inspected the entire building in the months following the attacks before turning it over to the building's owners, the LMDC said.