Three retired firefighters from New York who worked after the World Trade Center attack on 9/11 died on Monday. The cause of their death is believed to be connected to poisonous dust released during 9/11.
Robert Leaver, Daniel Heglund and Lieutenant Howard Bischoff all died on the same day. According to Daniel Nigro, FDNY commissioner, losing three firefighters at the same time is a painful reminder that they continue to perform heroic deeds in their department.
Bischoff, a 19-year veteran of the fire department, and Leaver, a 2-decade veteran, were friends since they were young. They both grew up in Brooklyn.
Heglund worked with the department for 21 years and met his death just one day before his 59th birthday.
One of the firefighters succumbed to leukemia, another to colon cancer and the third one to esophageal cancer.
According to the FDNY department, it lost 341 paramedics and firefighters on 9/11. Since then, it has lost 92 firefighters due to diseases caused by the searching for survivors.
People who were exposed during the first days suffered from respiratory difficulties. The lung diseases are mostly caused by inhalation of fumes, dust and smoke from the collapsed building. Many firefighters were forced to down their tools due to illness caused by 9/11.
Stony Brook Medicine's World Trade Center Health Program study revealed that 60% of WTC responders suffer from persistent respiratory diseases and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
The Program's director, Dr Benjamin Luft, stated that 10 years after 9/11, the mental and physical diseases continue to increase among the responders. He stated that his next move is to study how the physical and mental conditions of Ground Zero responders affect disease and genetic changes.
Their deaths come at a time when lawmakers are urging Congress to pass a bill increasing compensation and medical treatment for Ground Zero workers.
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