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Nearly 24 years after the devastating 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, three more victims have been identified, New York City officials announced Thursday. The identifications bring the total number of identified victims to 1,653.
The newly identified victims are Ryan Fitzgerald, of Floral Park, New York; Barbara Keating, of Palm Springs, California; and a third individual whose name is being withheld at the request of their family.
According to the city’s chief medical examiner, Dr. Jason Graham, these identifications were made possible through advanced DNA analysis and ongoing family outreach.
The remains of Keating and the unnamed victim were recovered in 2001, while Fitzgerald’s remains were recovered in 2002. While their official identification comes now through DNA testing, the names of Keating and Fitzgerald were already among those inscribed on the 9/11 Memorial.
“Nearly 25 years after the disaster at the World Trade Center, our commitment to identify the missing and return them to their loved ones stands as strong as ever,” Dr. Graham said.
He emphasized the ongoing dedication to this work, stating, “Each new identification testifies to the promise of science and sustained outreach to families despite the passage of time. We continue this work as our way of honoring the lost.”
Approximately 1,100 victims of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center remain unidentified. The attacks claimed the lives of 2,977 people in total, including 2,753 in New York City. The hijacked planes brought down the twin towers, struck the Pentagon, and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers and crew fought back.