The events of September 11th 2001 shocked the world. Thousands of people lost their lives and a whole country mourned. But amongst the devastation thousands and thousands of emergency responders headed to the rubble of the World Trade Centre to aid survivors and clear the debris. Years later the destruction of the Twin Towers is still affecting thousands of people who were at the scene.
This is because a large part of one of the towers had been built using asbestos - when the two collapsed about a thousand tons of the stuff would have been let loose into the environment. It is hard to estimate just how far the asbestos fibres could have travelled, but hundreds of thousands of people have potentially breathed in these toxic fibres that cause mesothelioma.
This is incredibly worrying because asbestos exposure has been found to cause mesothelioma. This type of cancer affects the lining of internal organs - most often the lungs - and is extremely aggressive. In 2006, five years after the attacks on the Twin Towers, the first emergency responder died of mesothelioma.
While it is regrettable that deaths resulting from mesothelioma are not surprising, it is unusual that they have started occurring so suddenly after asbestos exposure. Most people first start to see the effects of asbestos exposure 20-50 years later. The sudden onset of mesothelioma in this case is indicative of just how much asbestos was released into the atmosphere. In the years that have followed since, many more people have died of the cancer.
The tragedy of 9/11 is hard to exaggerate, especially when you consider that the future for those who came to the area to give their help are those most at risk from developing mesothelioma. As concerns about potential compensation payments are being discussed at government level, those that have been exposed to asbestos will be more immediately concerned about seeking specialist medical advice as soon as possible.
This is because a large part of one of the towers had been built using asbestos - when the two collapsed about a thousand tons of the stuff would have been let loose into the environment. It is hard to estimate just how far the asbestos fibres could have travelled, but hundreds of thousands of people have potentially breathed in these toxic fibres that cause mesothelioma.
This is incredibly worrying because asbestos exposure has been found to cause mesothelioma. This type of cancer affects the lining of internal organs - most often the lungs - and is extremely aggressive. In 2006, five years after the attacks on the Twin Towers, the first emergency responder died of mesothelioma.
While it is regrettable that deaths resulting from mesothelioma are not surprising, it is unusual that they have started occurring so suddenly after asbestos exposure. Most people first start to see the effects of asbestos exposure 20-50 years later. The sudden onset of mesothelioma in this case is indicative of just how much asbestos was released into the atmosphere. In the years that have followed since, many more people have died of the cancer.
The tragedy of 9/11 is hard to exaggerate, especially when you consider that the future for those who came to the area to give their help are those most at risk from developing mesothelioma. As concerns about potential compensation payments are being discussed at government level, those that have been exposed to asbestos will be more immediately concerned about seeking specialist medical advice as soon as possible.
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Make a asbestos compensation claim if you have suffered from the effects of coming in contact with asbestos.
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