American flags mark names on the National 9/11 Memorial ahead of the 22nd anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center.Photo:Gary Hershorn/Getty
Gary Hershorn/Getty
A man and a woman killed on9/11have been formally identified 22 years after theterrorist attackon the World Trade Center, according to the New York mayor’s office.
New York City Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jason Graham said in apress releaseFriday that the “two new identifications continue to fulfill a solemn pledge that OCME (Office of Chief Medical Examiner) made to return the remains of World Trade Center victims to theirloved ones.”
“Faced with the largest and most complex forensic investigation in the history of our country, we stand undaunted in our mission to use the latest advances in science to serve this promise,” he added.
A general view shows a test of the ‘Tribute in Lights’ 9/11 memorial light display in New York City.ED JONES/AFP via Getty
ED JONES/AFP via Getty
Graham said the identifications came through the ability of New York City’s DNA laboratory “to generate results after more than two decades of negative testing attempts."
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories
The identifications are the first to be made sinceSeptember 2021using DNA testing, he noted. Out of all the people who died in theWorld Trade Center attack, 40 percent — around 1,104 people — “remain unidentified,” he added, per the release
Fog shrouds the skyline of lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center on the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.Gary Hershorn/Getty
“Our thoughts turn to those we lost on that terrible morning and their families who continue to live every day with the pain of missing loved ones,” New York City MayorEric Adamssaid in the release.
Last year, PresidentJoe Bidenhonored the9/11victims during hisspeech at the Pentagon Memorial Ceremony.
“I know, for all those of you who lost someone. Twenty-one years is both a lifetime and no time at all,” he said in the tribute. “It’s good to remember. These memories help us heal, but they can also open up the hurt and take us back to that moment when the grief was so raw.”
source: people.com
