Almost twenty four years ago, on 11 September 2001, the world was turned upside-down when the Twin Towers in New York were attacked by the al-Qaeda terrorist group, resulting in the deaths of over 2,700 people.
Some families who lost loved ones in the devastating event were sadly never able to locate their remains, leading to a lack of closure.
Now, three more victims have been formally identified through painstaking DNA testing and scientific advancements; the New York Times reports that this brings the total number of remains formally matched to victims up to 1,653 out of an estimated 2,753.
Over 22,000 unidentified body parts were retrieved from the rubble in the aftermath of the planes crashing into the towers, and scientists have been largely testing bone fragments in the hopes of finding matches.
One newly identified woman has remained anonymous at the request of her family. The other two victims have been confirmed as Barbara Keating, who died aged 72, who was on the American Airlines Flight that was flown into the north tower (the first of the two to be hit), and Ryan Fitzgerald, a 26-year-old who was working as a foreign currency trader in the south tower when a plane crashed into it.
"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," chief medical examiner, Dr Jason Graham, said in a statement.
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Along with Keating's remains, part of a bank card and her hairbrush were recovered in 2001 but nothing was identified as a DNA match until this year. Fitzgerald's remains were discovered in 2002.
Barbara Keating's son, Paul, said he was grateful to New York officials and scientists for continuing to diligently attempt to give families closure through their work. He described his mother as a "lifetime overachiever" who supported single mothers and those living with intellectual disabilities, with close ties to her local church where she served as a secretary.
In her obituary, Keating is described as a two-times cancer survivor who was "smart, tough, professional and funny [...] She could always find a restaurant with a good martini".
"It's just an amazing feat, gesture – it's more than that, because they've been doing it as their life for 24 years," her son Paul said in an interview with the New York Post. "We're talking about moving six blocks of Manhattan to Staten Island and going through it milligram by milligram for 24 years.
"No one's ever done something like that for me, my family ever and I couldn't thank them enough."
Eric Adams, the Mayor of New York, said of the new identifications, "The pain of losing a loved one in the September 11 terror attacks echoes across the decades, but with these three new identifications, we take a step forward in comforting the family members still aching from that day."
Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
