casualties of the September 11 attacks

{{See also|Communication during the September 11 attacks}}

Most tall buildings in the United States at the time were not designed for complete evacuation during a crisis, even after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. It was also procedural for announcements in the case of high-rise fire safety for individuals to remain in their offices unless they were near the burning floor.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/17/nyregion/9-11-tape-has-late-change-on-evacuation.html|title=9/11 Tape Has Late Change On Evacuation|last=Dwyer|first=Jim|newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 17, 2004 |access-date=September 11, 2018|language=en|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401040248/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/17/nyregion/9-11-tape-has-late-change-on-evacuation.html|url-status=live}} However, after it took ten hours to completely evacuate the towers in the 1993 attack, multiple additions were made to the buildings and evacuation plans. Radio repeaters were installed in the towers to improve communication, battery powered emergency lights were installed, and fire drills held. Individuals who evacuated for both the 1993 and 2001 attacks reportedly stated they were better prepared for the 2001 evacuations.{{Cite web|date=May 18, 2004|title=Communication Breakdown On 9/11|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/communication-breakdown-on-9-11/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-07-28|website=CBS News|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140713030355/http://www.cbsnews.com:80/news/communication-breakdown-on-9-11/ |archive-date=July 13, 2014 }} At least two individuals who had evacuated in both 1993 and 2001 later reported that they had prepared for a potential evacuation after 1993, by bringing either an item such as a flashlight or an emergency preparedness bag with them.{{Cite journal |last1=Shields |first1=TJ |last2=Boyce |first2=K. E. |last3=McConnell |first3=N |date=7 April 2009 |title=The behavior and evacuation experiences of WTC 9/11 evacuees with self-designated mobility impairments |url=https://fseg.gre.ac.uk/HEED/publications/shields_boyce_FSJ_WTC_disabled.pdf |journal=Fire Safety Journal |volume=44 |issue=6 |pages=881–893|doi=10.1016/j.firesaf.2009.04.004 |bibcode=2009FirSJ..44..881S }}

Both 110-story towers housed three stairwells in the central cores of each. On maintenance floors containing lift and ventilation machinery (such as some of the floors where Flight 175 struck the South Tower), the northern and southern stairwells entered corridors extending north and south to stairwells that bypassed the heavy equipment. The three stairwells―labeled A, B, and C―were as tall as the buildings, with two built to {{Convert|44|inch|cm}} in width and the third being {{Convert|56|inch|cm}} wide. In the North Tower, the stairs were approximately {{convert|70|ft}} apart, compared to the distance of {{convert|200|ft}} between the stairwells in the South Tower.{{Cite news |last=Corbett |first=Glenn |date=September 10, 2018 |title=How the Design of the World Trade Center Claimed Lives on 9/11 |language=en |work=History.com |url=https://www.history.com/news/world-trade-center-stairwell-design-9-11 |url-status=live |access-date=September 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605220000/https://www.history.com/news/world-trade-center-stairwell-design-9-11 |archive-date=June 5, 2019}}

File:911 - FEMA - WTC impacts (graphic).svg; the planes are not drawn to scale]]

In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, media reports suggested that tens of thousands might have been killed. Estimates of the number of people present in the Twin Towers that morning range between 14,000 and 19,000. The National Institute of Standards and Technology determined that approximately 17,400 civilians were in the World Trade Center complex at the time of the attacks.{{Cite book|author=Averill, Jason D. |url=http://wtc.nist.gov/NISTNCSTAR1-7.pdf |chapter=Occupant Behavior, Egress, and Emergency Communications |title=Final Reports of the Federal Building and Fire Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster |publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) |year=2005 |display-authors=etal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090714130213/http://wtc.nist.gov/NISTNCSTAR1-7.pdf |archive-date=July 14, 2009 }} Turnstile counts from the Port Authority indicate that the number of people typically in the Twin Towers by 10:30 am was 14,154.{{Cite book|author=Dwyer, Jim and Kevin Flynn|title=102 Minutes|publisher=Times Books|year=2005|page=266}}

Almost all of the deaths in the Twin Towers occurred on floors trapped by the plane impacts, but it is unknown how many people were in those floors when the towers were struck. The available data suggests that between 1,344{{cite news|date=September 10, 2003|title=TWO YEARS LATER: THE 91ST FLOOR; The Line Between Life and Death, Still Indelible|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/10/us/two-years-later-the-91st-floor-the-line-between-life-and-death-still-indelible.html|access-date=November 19, 2022}} and 1,426{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238}} people occupied floors 92–110 of the North Tower when American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the skyscraper at 08:46, none of whom survived. Somewhere in the region of 599{{cite news|date=December 19, 2001|title=Elevator mechanics left towers before buildings collapsed|website=Harm Reduction Ohio|url=https://www.harmreductionohio.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/WTC-story-page-3.pdf}} to 690{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238}} people were present on floors 77–110 of the South Tower when it was hit by United Airlines Flight 175 at 09:03, with only 18 survivors.

In interviews with 271 survivors, researchers in 2008 found that only about 8.6% had fled as soon as the alarm was raised while about 91.4% stayed behind to wait for more information or carrying out at least one additional task (collecting belongings/calling a family member). The interviews also showed that 82% of those who were evacuating stopped at least once during their way down, due to congestion on the stairs, to take a rest, or due to environmental conditions (smoke/debris/fire/water).{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/sep/09/september11.usa|title=9/11 survivors put off evacuation to shut down computers, study finds|last=Glendinning|first=Lee|date=September 9, 2008|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=September 11, 2018|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401003823/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/sep/09/september11.usa|url-status=live}} Another hindrance to the evacuation of the World Trade Center was that as the planes struck, the force of the impact caused the buildings to shift enough to jam doors in their frames and stairwells to become blocked by broken wall boards,{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-died.html|title=Fighting to Live as the Towers Died|work=The New York Times|date=May 26, 2002 |access-date=September 18, 2018|language=en|archive-date=July 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722023348/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-died.html|url-status=live}} trapping dozens of people throughout the buildings, mostly on the floors closer to the impact zones. Communication breakdowns also hampered the evacuation of workers as one survivor recounted calling 911 multiple times from the South Tower only to be put on hold twice, as 911 operators had a lack of awareness about what was happening and were overwhelmed with the amount of calls, at times repeating incorrect information. Communication issues were also seen as first responders were utilizing different radio channels to communicate, their frequencies were overwhelmed or they had been off duty and responded without their radios.

Within moments of Flight 11's impact, the Port Authority issued a complete evacuation of the North Tower, an order that only those beneath the 92nd floor were capable of heeding. Nonetheless, the roughly 8,000 people who could descend were left facing a harrowing scenario. Neither tower had been designed to facilitate a mass evacuation, and each of the twins only had three stairwells descending to the ground level. For anyone higher than the 91st floor, escape was impossible, with one victim relaying to 911 after the first plane hit that the stairs were inaccessible for the 106th floor.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-north-tower.html|title=Accounts From the North Tower|work=The New York Times|date=May 26, 2002 |access-date=September 13, 2018|language=en|archive-date=June 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628231331/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-north-tower.html|url-status=live}} A computer modeling study done after the attacks, projected that it would take about 1 hour and 27 minutes ± 2 minutes for 8,239 people to evacuate the tower. The modeling also suggested that if Stairwell B had remained intact through the entire building all 1,049 projected survivors could have evacuated with an additional 2 minutes to the total time.{{Cite journal |last1=Galea Ed Galea|first1=Edwin R |last2=Hulse |first2=Lynn |last3=Day |first3=Rachel |last4=Siddiqui |first4=Asim |last5=Sharp |first5=Gary |date=2012 |title=The UK WTC 9/11 evacuation study: An overview of findings derived from first-hand interview data and computer modelling |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/fam.1070 |journal=Fire and Materials |volume=36 |issue=5–6 |pages=501–521 |doi=10.1002/fam.1070 |s2cid=110718132 |via=Wiley|url-access=subscription }} At least 77 people were freed on the 88th through 90th floors by a team of Port Authority officers: construction manager Frank De Martini, building inspector Pablo Ortiz, engineer Mak Hanna, environmental coordinator Pete Negron, and Assistant General Manager Carlos S. da Costa. Just minutes after the plane crash, emergency responders arrived at the World Trade Center and began organizing teams to assist in the evacuation of the North Tower.{{Cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/1st-fdny-battalion-chief-enter-north-tower-911/story?id=56520453|title=1st FDNY battalion chief to enter the north tower on 9/11 is retiring|date=July 12, 2018|website=ABC News|language=en|access-date=September 13, 2018|archive-date=September 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190905060454/https://abcnews.go.com/US/1st-fdny-battalion-chief-enter-north-tower-911/story?id=56520453|url-status=live}} File:Dust covered 911 victims.jpg

Many people began to evacuate via the stairs on their own, while others chose to wait for instructions from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Others who chose to evacuate were also pushed into action by loved ones who had been able to contact them. As evacuees descended the staircases in the North Tower, they were directed to descend to the concourse level beneath the World Trade Center complex, where the mall was located. Others who managed to escape credit the "Survivors Staircase," an outdoor staircase that survived the disaster, and World Trade Center workers who knew escape routes. One survivor stated, "Between the 11th floor and the 9th floor, we wound through this maze. When we got to the plaza level we were walking through and there was one emergency light on. There was water up to our calves. All of a sudden there was a voice. We saw someone in a miner hat. He opened the door and said 'Just keep going'."{{Cite news|url=https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/friends-exit-world-trade-center-via-survivors-stairs/x2EsKEUjdoEvmCwWdXdDyO/|title=2 friends exit World Trade Center on 9/11 via survivors' stairs|work=palmbeachpost|access-date=September 13, 2018|archive-date=March 31, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331134332/https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/friends-exit-world-trade-center-via-survivors-stairs/x2EsKEUjdoEvmCwWdXdDyO/|url-status=live}}

File:South Tower before being struck.jpg

Meanwhile, in the South Tower, almost all of its roughly 8,600 occupants knew immediately that something serious just happened in the building next door. The sound of the crashing airliner was heard by well over 4,000 people. Some who had glimpsed Flight 11 just before it impacted the North Tower thought it was lined up to strike their building, and the fireballs from the crash immediately thereafter were witnessed by countless employees on sides facing the North Tower. The blast shattered windows on the South Tower's 95th floor,{{cite web|url=https://kirstyspraggon.com/2013/09/11/9-11-world-trade-center-survivor-retells-the-events-of-the-plane-crash/|title=9/11 – She Was in Tower II|date=September 11, 2013|access-date=December 30, 2023}} while the tower's northern and western façades were battered by debris.{{cite web|url=https://holdthedoor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/penn-stater.pdf|title=Rob Fazio lost his dad in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. Now he's working to make sure his father's last, selfless act continues to help others.|year=2018|access-date=June 25, 2023}} As the top of the South Tower became enveloped by the thick smoke pouring southeast, many people witnessed desperate office workers jumping from the tower burning opposite.{{Cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-02-jumper_x.htm |title=Desperation forced a horrific decision |publisher=USAToday |date=September 2, 2002 |author=Cauchon, Dennis and Martha Moore |access-date=September 9, 2006 |archive-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120901152537/http://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-02-jumper_x.htm |url-status=live }} The disaster in the North Tower was even physically perceived by a number of people in the South Tower. Survivors from the South Tower reported feeling their building shake as the first plane crashed into its twin, and smoke from the North Tower began seeping into the South Tower through ventilation ducts.{{cite news|title=September 11 survivor: 'As I left the south tower I heard a plane roaring towards the World Trade Center — I thought it was the end and screamed out my mummy's name'|url=https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/people/sept-11-survivor-i-thought-this-was-the-end-i-screamed-out-my-mummys-name-3379975|date=September 11, 2021|access-date=May 18, 2023}} Those at the same altitude as the fires burning in the North Tower could feel the extreme heat radiating into their floors.{{cite news|date=May 26, 2002|title=Accounts From the South Tower|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html|access-date=April 21, 2023}} Media coverage, phone calls, and word of mouth quickly alerted anyone else to the seriousness of what was happening. Half personally believed their lives were in danger.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=87}}

Because of what happened to the North Tower, many people in the South Tower chose to evacuate as a precaution. However, the major hindrance to this process was that for the 17 minutes between the impacts of Flight 11 and Flight 175, it had not yet been determined that a terrorist attack was unfolding. The initial assumption by most was that the first crash had merely been an accident,{{cite news|title=9:03 a.m.: The 9/11 moment when many grasped a new reality|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/09/10/903-a-m-the-9-11-moment-when-many-grasped-a-new-reality/|website=The Mercury News|date=September 10, 2021|access-date=November 30, 2022}} and even those who suspected it was a deliberate attack based on its flying were uncertain. For this reason, the Port Authority in the South Tower did not initiate a full evacuation of the building, instead deciding to spread the word via the South Tower's intercom system and security guards for workers to stay put and remain in their offices.{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5335a3.htm|title=Preliminary Results from the World Trade Center Evacuation Study – New York City, 2003|access-date=September 9, 2017|archive-date=December 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181204032648/https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5335a3.htm|url-status=live}} A deliveryman for the South Tower told reporters he decided to leave following the first crash, and on his way out he heard a voice over the intercom declaring that: "The building is secure. The safest place is inside; stay calm and do not leave." Others who ignored the message were met with officials at the lobby who told them to return to their respective floors.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/sep/16/september11.usa3|title=Anger of survivors told to stay inside blazing towers|last=Vulliamy|first=Ed|date=September 16, 2001|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=September 11, 2018|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401015950/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/sep/16/september11.usa3|url-status=live}} In a radio conversation recorded within three minutes of the first impact, the director of the South Tower told his counterpart in the North Tower that he was not going to order an evacuation until given the all-clear by "the boss from the fire department or somebody".{{cite report |title=Final Report of the 9/11 Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States |date=July 22, 2004 |publisher=National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States |access-date=August 15, 2021 |url=https://9-11commission.gov/report/911Report.pdf |ref={{harvid|9/11 Commission|2004a}} |archive-date=August 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816164111/https://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report.pdf |url-status=live |page=304}} This was done in order to avoid overcrowding on the plaza and concourse levels, which was feared would slow the evacuation and rescue operations in the North Tower.{{Cite news|url=https://people.com/human-interest/911-survivors-reflect-escape-south-tower/|title=9/11 Survivors Reflect on Their Miraculous Escape from the South Tower 16 Years Later: 'We'll Be Brothers for Life'|work=People|access-date=September 18, 2018|language=en|archive-date=August 14, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814125249/https://people.com/human-interest/911-survivors-reflect-escape-south-tower/|url-status=live}}

Despite the announcements, thousands continued to evacuate the South Tower. More than 3,500 people were present on-site between the 77th and 110th floors,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238}} including at least 1,100 employees of AON Insurance (floors 92 and 98–105) and over 700 people working for Fiduciary Trust (floors 90 and 94–97).{{cite web|url=https://magazine.nd.edu/stories/domers-who-survived-the-world-trade-center-attacks/|title=Domers who survived the World Trade Center attacks|year=2001|access-date=June 26, 2023}} Both companies had offices directly across from the North Tower's impact zone, and executives working for the two firms did not hesitate to order an evacuation of their offices immediately following the first impact, allowing more than 80% of the employees from each company to get to safety before the South Tower was struck.Dwyer, Jim and Flynn, Kevin, 102 Minutes: p. 23 Lower down, the offices of Fuji Bank (floors 79–82), Euro Brokers (floor 84){{Cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/twin-towers-survivor-story/|title=A Twin Towers' Survivor Story|last=Clark|first=Brian|date=April 30, 2002|website=www.pbs.org|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012190028/https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/twin-towers-survivor-story/|archive-date=October 12, 2019|access-date=September 8, 2019}} and CSC (floor 87) were also evacuated,{{Cite news|url=https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2017/09/10/9-11-delaware-company-got-all-its-workers-out-tower-2/645507001/|title=On 9/11, Delaware company got all its workers out of Tower 2|work=delawareonline|access-date=September 11, 2018|language=en|archive-date=December 23, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223070607/http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2017/09/10/9-11-delaware-company-got-all-its-workers-out-tower-2/645507001/|url-status=live}} the latter of which avoided suffering any casualties in the South Tower. Executives such as Eric Eisenberg, who personally made the decision to evacuate AON's offices, instructed their employees to take the stairs down to the 78th floor Skylobby, where they could take an express elevator to the ground level and exit the building safely. Within a window of 17 minutes, between 8:46{{nbsp}}a.m. and 9:03{{nbsp}}a.m., an estimated 2,900 people had gotten below the 77th floor of the South Tower,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=92}} while between 599 and 690 did not.{{cite news|date=December 19, 2001|title=Elevator mechanics left towers before buildings collapsed|website=Harm Reduction Ohio|url=https://www.harmreductionohio.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/WTC-story-page-3.pdf}}{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238}}

By 8:57 a.m., officials working for the FDNY and NYPD opined that the ongoing disaster in the North Tower had made the entire WTC complex unsafe and requested that the South Tower be evacuated,{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=304}} advice that took an additional six minutes to be implemented. By 9:02 a.m., an announcement was made gently giving workers in the South Tower the option to leave.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=306}} Sean Rooney, a victim who worked for AON Risk Management on the 98th floor, was speaking on the phone to his wife seconds before impact, allowing some of the announcement to be heard in the background: "May I have your attention, please. Repeating this message: the situation occurred in Building 1. If conditions warrant on your floor, you may wish to start an orderly evacuation."

File:Aerial view of the Pentagon during rescue operations post-September 11 attack.JPEG following the attacks]]

Since the Pentagon was struck after the World Trade Center, many who worked there did not think the attack would extend past New York City. A media relations specialist who was working in the building at the time recounted years later that she told a coworker, "This is the safest place to be in the world right now".{{Cite web|last1=Hutchison|first1=Peter|last2=Trio phe|first2=Catherine|last3=Bonilla|first3=Laura|date=2021-07-28|title=The Day That Changed America: Remembering 9/11, 20 Years On|url=https://www.ibtimes.com/day-changed-america-remembering-911-20-years-3261947|url-status=live|access-date=2021-08-01|website=International Business Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729032158/https://www.ibtimes.com/day-changed-america-remembering-911-20-years-3261947 |archive-date=July 29, 2021 }} Another was on the phone with his wife and her sixth-grade class when the plane struck, stating the whole building felt like it had been completely lifted off the foundations. He hung up after stating, "We've been bombed, I have to go" before immediately starting to evacuate. Uncertainty about the type of attack led to many being cautious in evacuating with at least one security guard warning of potential shooters laying in wait, to gun down evacuees.{{Cite web|last=Little|first=Becky|date=2 September 2020|title=On 9/11, Some Evacuated the Pentagon{{snd}}But Kept Going Back Inside|url=https://www.history.com/news/september-11-pentagon-survivors-evacuation|url-status=live|access-date=2021-08-01|website=History.com|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200911234554/https://www.history.com/news/september-11-pentagon-survivors-evacuation |archive-date=September 11, 2020 }}

{{Main|Marriott World Trade Center}}

File:Marriott World Trade Center.jpg on May 15, 2001, approximately four months prior to the attacks]]

World Trade Center 3 was also known as the World Trade Center Hotel, the Vista Hotel, and the Marriott Hotel. During evacuations of the two larger towers, this 22-story hotel was used as an evacuation runway for about 1,000 people who were evacuated from the area.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/11/nyregion/one-hotel-s-fight-finish-marriott-portal-safety-towers-fell.html|title=One Hotel's Fight to the Finish; At the Marriott, a Portal to Safety as the Towers Fell|last1=Dwyer|first1=Jim|last2=Fessenden|first2=Ford|newspaper=The New York Times|date=September 11, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203161812/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/11/nyregion/one-hotel-s-fight-finish-marriott-portal-safety-towers-fell.html|archive-date=December 3, 2019|url-status=live|access-date=June 2, 2019}} The guests and others who were evacuated through the hotel were guided by hotel staff through the hotel's bar and outside onto Liberty Street.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hotelbusiness.com/a-year-later-downtown-ny-remembers-911/|title=A Year Later, Downtown NY Remembers 9/11|date=September 11, 2002|website=Hotel Business|language=en-US|access-date=June 2, 2019|archive-date=June 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190602195053/https://www.hotelbusiness.com/a-year-later-downtown-ny-remembers-911/|url-status=live}} A policeman was stationed holding the door between the Marriott and Liberty Street, and would periodically hold up the line due to concerns about falling debris or bodies.{{Cite web |last=Van Atta |first=Dale |date=2019-09-11 |title=How This Ill-Fated Marriott Hotel and Its Brave Staff Played a Key Role in 9/11 |url=https://www.ldsliving.com/how-this-ill-fated-marriott-hotel-and-its-brave-staff-played-a-key-role-in-9-11/s/91498 |access-date=2022-04-15 |website=LDS Living |language=en}} A paramedic helping in the evacuation process remembered the air being so hot and thick that he had trouble breathing and difficulty seeing, but could hear the PASS device alarms of firefighters that had collapsed and needed assistance.

A majority of the registered 940 guests at the hotel began to evacuate after alarms were raised due to a piece of one of the plane's landing gear landing on the top floor of the pool. Some did not immediately do so, with at least one guest recounting that he woke up to the first plane hitting the North Tower and went back to bed only to be awoken by the impact of the plane hitting the South Tower. He then watched the news and took a shower, got dressed, and gathered his belongings before evacuating after watching the South Tower collapse.{{Cite web|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/september-eleven-wtc-marriott-survivors-recalls-collapse/1747171.html|title=9/11 Survivor Recalls Escaping Collapsing Marriott Center|last=Lupin|first=Michael|date=September 10, 2013|website=VOA|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190602175503/https://www.voanews.com/a/september-eleven-wtc-marriott-survivors-recalls-collapse/1747171.html|archive-date=June 2, 2019|url-status=live|access-date=June 2, 2019}} The delay was in part to many guests being unable to see the damage done to the North Tower from any vantage point on the grounds of the Marriott.

{{Main|Rescue and recovery effort after the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center|Maritime response following the September 11 attacks|l1 = Rescue and recovery effort after the September 11 attacks}}

File:WORLD TRADE CENTER ATTACK.jpg patrolling the New York Harbor with the impact area of World Trade Center in sight, September 11, 2001]]

After both towers had been struck, the order to evacuate the North Tower quickly spread to encompass not only the entire World Trade Center complex, but most high rise buildings in Lower Manhattan and surrounding areas as well. The evacuation of employees from the North and South towers continued past the plaza and through the concourse. Evacuees from the North Tower were directed through the underground shopping mall, from where they exited the complex onto Church Street. Evacuees from the South Tower were directed elsewhere to prevent congestion; they were sent across the covered footbridge over West Street to the World Financial Center or to 4 World Trade Center and out onto Liberty Street.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}} Not all of the evacuees were connected to World Trade Centers, with students from Stuyvesant High School, the Borough of Manhattan Community College, tourists, residents of the area with their pets and others, also involved in the evacuation process.{{Cite web |last=Hanc |first=John |date=September 9, 2021 |title=On 9/11, a Flotilla of Ferries, Yachts and Tugboats Evacuated 500,000 People Away From Ground Zero |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/911-flotilla-boats-evacuated-500000-new-yorkers-safety-180978614/ |access-date=2022-04-13 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}

Relieving congestion within the city and clear the evacuees and civilians, boats and ferries were used to further evacuate Lower Manhattan.{{Cite book|title=American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11|last1=Kendra|first1=James M|last2=Wachtendorf|first2=Tricia|publisher=Temple University Press|year=2016|isbn=978-1-4399-0821-1|location=Temple University}} Some of the boats were a part of the Coast Guard, others were civilian, company or state-owned, that acted independently or after seeking the permission of the Coast Guard, who initially instructed vessels to stand by and then issued a request for all available boats to participate.{{Cite web|url=http://www1.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2007/sep/evacuation090806.html|title=Study focuses on 9/11 evacuation of Manhattan by water|website=www1.udel.edu|access-date=September 18, 2018|archive-date=October 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014051719/http://www.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2007/sep/evacuation090806.html|url-status=live}} One participating vessel's crew later recounted the call from Lt. Michael Day of the Coast Guard saying; "All available boats... This is the United States Coast Guard... Anyone wanting to help with the evacuation of Lower Manhattan report to Governors Island." In total the water evacuation of lower Manhattan moved about 500,000 during the day.

{{See also|Salty and Roselle}}

On the day of the attacks, there were a number of disabled individuals in the World Trade Center; there was a revised evacuation plan in place after the 1993 attack as many had been told to wait for rescuers and some waited up to nine hours.{{Cite book |last1=Warnick |first1=Mark |title=Emergency Incident Management Systems; Fundamentals and Applications |last2=Molino |first2=Louis |publisher=Wiley |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-119-26711-9 |location=New Jersey |page=218}}{{Cite book |last=Morris |first=Richard |title=Disability Research and Policy; Current Perspectives |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-135-60447-9 |location=New Jersey |language=English}} Some like John Abruzzo, a quadriplegic, and Tina Hansen were able to evacuate, as Abruzzo was carried by coworkers from the 69th floor down in an evacuation chair and indicated that it took them about ninety minutes to reach ground level. The chairs were some of the about 125 that were purchased after the 1993 bombing, however there was varying levels of training and communication about them.{{Cite web |last=Gilmer |first=Tim |date=2001-12-01 |title=Unsafe Refuge: Why did so many wheelchair users die on Sept. 11? |url=https://newmobility.com/unsafe-refuge-why-did-so-many-wheelchair-users-die-on-sept-11/ |access-date=2023-09-14 |website=New Mobility |language=en-US}} Others such as Michael Hingson, who was born blind, were able to evacuate from the 78th floor of the North Tower with the help of his guide dog Roselle.{{Cite web |last=Spektor |first=Elle |date=2021-09-11 |title=A blind man, his guide dog, and their escape from the North Tower on 9/11 |url=https://pix11.com/news/local-news/september-11-20-years-later/a-blind-man-his-guide-dog-and-their-escape-from-the-north-tower-on-9-11/ |access-date=2023-09-14 |website=PIX11 |language=en-US}}

{{See also|Collapse of the World Trade Center}}File:World Trade Center Site After 9-11 Attacks With Original Building Locations.jpg) with an overlay showing the locations of the original buildings]]

No one in the North Tower survived in the impact zone, above it, or immediately below it.{{Cite book | last = National Commission on Terrorist Attacks | title = The 9/11 Commission Report | publisher = W. W. Norton & Company | date = July 22, 2004 | edition = first | url = https://archive.org/details/911commissionrep00nati/page/294 | page = [https://archive.org/details/911commissionrep00nati/page/294 294] | isbn = 0-393-32671-3 | url-access = registration }} The highest floor in the building that had any survivors was floor 91. Approximately 15 people in a central stairwell on floor 22 or below survived the collapse of WTC 1, escaping or being rescued from the rubble.{{Cite news|url=https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-05-miracles-usat_x.htm|title=USA Today Miracles emerge from the debris|access-date=July 10, 2020|archive-date=June 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626125816/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-05-miracles-usat_x.htm|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/the-fall-guy/|title=FACT CHECK: Man at WTC Survives Fall|work=Snopes.com|access-date=September 18, 2018|language=en-US}}

At least 33 people escaped from at or above the impact zone of the South Tower (floors 77 to 85) after it was struck by United Airlines Flight 175 at 9:03 am, the highest coming from floor 98.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html|title=Accounts From the South Tower; Transcripts of Interviews|last1=Dwyer|first1=Jim|last2=Lipton|first2=Eric|date=May 26, 2002|website=The New York Times|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814233011/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html|archive-date=August 14, 2019|access-date=September 8, 2019|last3=Fessenden|first3=Ford}}{{cite web |title=The Longest Week |url=https://nymag.com/news/articles/wtc/longestweek3.htm |website=New York Magazine |publisher=New York Metro News |access-date=3 June 2024}} Individuals escaped from the South Tower impact zone using stairwell A in the northwest corner, the only stairwell left intact after the impact. Investigators believe that stairwell A remained passable until the South Tower collapsed at 9:59 am. Because of communication difficulties between 911 operators and FDNY and NYPD responders, most of them were unaware that stairwell A was passable and instructed survivors above the impact zone to wait for assistance by rescue personnel. Despite the relatively few survivors from the impact zone and above, the 9/11 Commission did bring up the possibility of others who may have descended from the point of impact but were unable to make it all the way down before the tower collapsed and killed everybody still within.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=314}}

File:French Urban Search and Rescue.jpg dog working with the Urban Search and Rescue Task Force, works to find people trapped at the site of the World Trade Center after the attacks.]]After the towers collapsed, only 20 individuals in or below the towers escaped from the debris, including 12 firefighters and three Port Authority police officers. Only 16 individuals who were inside the collapsing North Tower survived and were rescued, and they were all trying to evacuate via stairwell B, located in the center of the building. Four people who were in the concourse area between the Twin Towers survived and either saved themselves or were rescued. Nobody who was in the South Tower at the time of its collapse survived.{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/nation/2021/09/05/people-who-survived-collapse-twin-towers-september-11/5453485001/ |title= USA Today|website=www.usatoday.com |access-date=17 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}{{cite web|last1=Fishman|first1=Steve|title=The Miracle Survivors|url=https://nymag.com/nymetro/news/sept11/2003/n_9189/|website=www.nymag.com|date=September 5, 2003|access-date=June 28, 2020}} The last survivor removed from the WTC collapse debris, Genelle Guzman-McMillan, was found in the ruins of the North Tower 27 hours after its collapse.{{cite web|last1=Walters|first1=Joanna|title=9/11: 'I was the last person pulled alive from the rubble of the Twin Towers'|url=http://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/270365/9-11-I-was-the-last-person-pulled-alive-from-the-rubble-of-the-Twin-Towers|website=www.express.co.uk|date=September 10, 2011|access-date=September 22, 2015|archive-date=June 3, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603235249/https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/270365/9-11-I-was-the-last-person-pulled-alive-from-the-rubble-of-the-Twin-Towers|url-status=live}}

An unknown number of other people survived the initial collapse, but were buried in air pockets deep beneath the rubble and could not be rescued in time.{{cite web|last1=Langton|first1=James|title=Twin tower victims 'buried alive'|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/twin-tower-victims-buried-alive-6331410.html|website=www.standard.co.uk|date=April 12, 2012|access-date=September 22, 2015|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401072256/https://www.standard.co.uk/news/twin-tower-victims-buried-alive-6331410.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Cauchon|first1=Dennis|last2=Moore|first2=Martha|title=Miracles emerge from debris|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-05-miracles-usat_x.htm|work=USA Today|access-date=September 22, 2015|archive-date=June 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190623114148/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-05-miracles-usat_x.htm|url-status=live}} Some were able to rescue themselves and others from the rubble by climbing through the rubble{{Cite web|url=https://www.911memorial.org/blog/frozen-time-wristwatch-tells-tale-survival|title=Frozen in Time: Wristwatch Tells Tale of Survival|website=National September 11 Memorial & Museum|access-date=September 18, 2018|archive-date=August 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805224830/https://www.911memorial.org/blog/frozen-time-wristwatch-tells-tale-survival|url-status=live}} or digging and listening for sounds of life in order to safely remove the victims from the rubble.{{Cite news|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/this_just_in/2002/09/an_unlikely_hero.html|title=An Unlikely Hero|last=Liss|first=Rebecca|date=September 11, 2015|work=Slate|access-date=September 18, 2018|language=en-US|issn=1091-2339|archive-date=September 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180928221709/http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/this_just_in/2002/09/an_unlikely_hero.html|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Health effects arising from the September 11 attacks|World Trade Center Health Program}}

As of September 28, 2008, a total of over 33,000 police officers, firefighters, responders, and community members have been treated for injuries and sickness related to the 9/11 attacks in New York City, including respiratory conditions, mental health problems like PTSD and depression, gastrointestinal conditions, and at least 4,166 cases of cancer; according to one advocacy group "more cops have died of illness linked to the attack than had perished in it".{{Cite web|url=http://www.911healthnow.org/911healthnow/The_9_11_Health_Crisis_files/9%3A11%20Health%20Crisis%20Fact%20Sheet%20Download.pdf|title=9/11 Health Crisis Fact Sheet: The 9/11 Health Crisis, 911 Health Now|date=September 28, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904155439/http://www.911healthnow.org/911healthnow/The_9_11_Health_Crisis_files/9:11%20Health%20Crisis%20Fact%20Sheet%20Download.pdf|archive-date=September 4, 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jon-stewart-sept-11-responders_us_567ab1e5e4b06fa6887f7bd8|title=Why Jon Stewart Fought So Hard For 9/11 Responders|last1=Reporter|first1=Michael McAuliff Senior Congressional|last2=Post|first2=The Huffington|date=December 23, 2015|website=The Huffington Post|access-date=February 7, 2017|archive-date=May 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180516064952/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jon-stewart-sept-11-responders_us_567ab1e5e4b06fa6887f7bd8|url-status=live}}

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Daily Show host Jon Stewart and others succeeded in pushing for a law passed by Congress in 2015 that permanently extends health care benefits for the responders and adds five years to the victims' compensation program. Stewart's advocacy on the issue continued into 2019. In June of that year, he testified in front of Congress on behalf of 9/11 first responders who did not have proper health care benefits from the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. During the testimony he was critical that "Sick and dying, they [first responders] brought themselves down here to speak to no one" and that it was "Shameful" and "...an embarrassment to the country and it is a stain on this institution."{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/06/jon-stewart-testimony-911-first-responders|title=Watch Jon Stewart Shred Congress Over Lack of Health Care for 9/11 First Responders|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=June 11, 2019|language=en|access-date=July 26, 2019|archive-date=January 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200105030254/https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/06/jon-stewart-testimony-911-first-responders|url-status=live}}

{{See also|Lists of victims of the September 11 attacks|Memorials and services for the September 11 attacks|Deaths in September 2001}}

File:September 11th Memorial and Museum.jpg

A total of 2,606 people who were in the World Trade Center and on the ground perished as a result of the attacks and the subsequent collapse of the towers.{{Cite news|url=http://www.newyorkmetro.com/news/articles/wtc/1year/numbers.htm |title=September 11 by the Numbers |date=September 5, 2002 |newspaper=New York |access-date=September 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901161103/http://www.newyorkmetro.com/news/articles/wtc/1year/numbers.htm |archive-date=September 1, 2006 }} This consisted of 2,192 civilians (including eight EMTs and paramedics from private hospital units); 343 members of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY); and 71 law enforcement officers including 23 members of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), 37 members of the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD), four members of the New York State Office of Tax Enforcement (OTE), three officers of the New York State Office of Court Administration (OCA), one fire marshal of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) who had sworn law enforcement powers (and was also among the 343 FDNY members killed), one member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), one member of the New York Fire Patrol (FPNY), and one member of the United States Secret Service (USSS).{{Cite web |url=http://www.nleomf.org/facts/enforcement/deadliest.html |title=Deadliest Days in Law Enforcement History |publisher=National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund |access-date=April 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160708090204/http://www.nleomf.org/facts/enforcement/deadliest.html |archive-date=July 8, 2016 }}NIST NCSTAR1-8 This total includes K-9 Sirius, a Port Authority bomb-sniffing dog.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/wtc-police-dog-remembered/|title=WTC Police Dog Remembered|date=February 11, 2009|access-date=September 12, 2023|publisher=CBS News|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-date=March 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200302022513/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/wtc-police-dog-remembered/}}

The average age of the dead in New York City was 40.{{cite web|url=http://www.gothamgazette.com/demographics/91102.shtml|title=9/11/01-02: A Demographic Portrait Of The Victims In 10048|author=Beveridge, Andrew|publisher=Gotham Gazette|access-date=February 24, 2007|archive-date=December 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225172642/http://www.gothamgazette.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52|url-status=live}} The youngest victim was Christine Lee Hanson of Groton, Massachusetts, a two-and-a-half-year-old girl who was a passenger on Flight 175. The oldest was Robert Norton, an 85-year-old retiree from Lubec, Maine who was on Flight 11. In the buildings, the youngest person was 18-year-old Richard Allen Pearlman, a volunteer medic, and the oldest was Albert Joseph, a 79-year-old maintenance worker for Morgan Stanley.{{cite web|url=http://www.albany.edu/mumford/wtc/age.htm|title=Victims of the World Trade Center attack, listed by age|publisher=Lewis Mumford Center for comparative urban and regional research|access-date=September 11, 2006|archive-date=April 3, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403120710/https://www.albany.edu/mumford/wtc/age.htm|url-status=live}}USA Today: [http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/11/victims-list.htm People killed in plane attacks.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012132805/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/11/victims-list.htm |date=October 12, 2019 }} September 25, 2011.{{Cite web|title=September 11: A Memorial|url=http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/memorial/lists/by-age/|publisher=CNN}} Ten pregnant women and their unborn children were killed in the attacks as well.{{cite web|url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252260/new-911-book-husband-writes-about-losing-wife-unborn-child|title='We're having a problem on the plane': Husband writes about losing wife, unborn child on 9/11|publisher=Catholic News Agency|author=Yoder, Katie|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=September 11, 2022|access-date=September 12, 2023|archive-date=September 12, 2022|archive-url=https://archive.today/20220912042719/https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252260/new-911-book-husband-writes-about-losing-wife-unborn-child}}{{cite web|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-unborn-10-of-911|title=The Unborn 10 of 9/11|publisher=Daily Beast|author=Daly, Michael|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=September 15, 2018|access-date=September 12, 2023|archive-date=September 13, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230913024214/https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-unborn-10-of-911}}

File:September 11th Tribute in Light from Bayonne, New Jersey.jpg on September 11, 2014, the thirteenth anniversary of the attacks, seen from Bayonne, New Jersey; the tallest building in the picture is the new One World Trade Center]]

Other victims included Bill Biggart, a photojournalist;{{cite news|url=http://www.legacy.com/sept11/nytimes/story.aspx?personid=94786|title=William "Bill" Biggart: 'I'm With the Firemen'|work=Legacy.com|date=2001-09-18|access-date=2019-01-10}} Keith A. Glascoe, an actor;{{cite web |title=Keith A. Glascoe |url=https://www.firehero.org/fallen-firefighter/keith-a-glascoe/ |website=National Fallen Firefighters Foundation |access-date=19 February 2019}} Nezam Hafiz, who played for the Guyana national cricket team;{{cite web|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/583209.html|title=A generous, affable cricketer lost to a terror attack|last=Della Penna|first=Peter|date=22 September 2012|work=ESPNcricinfo|access-date=22 September 2012}} Eamon McEneaney, a Hall of Fame lacrosse player;{{cite web|url=http://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=662|title=South Pool: Panel N-57 - Eamon J. McEneaney|publisher=National September 11 Memorial & Museum|access-date=October 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727095710/http://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=662|archive-date=July 27, 2013}} and Dan Trant, an NBA basketball player.{{Cite web |title=Daniel Patrick Trant |url=https://names.911memorial.org/ |publisher=National September 11 Memorial & Museum |date= |access-date=2022-06-14 |archive-date=2022-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220613203133/https://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=2876 |url-status=bot: unknown }}

The exact number of civilians and emergency workers killed in the North Tower is not conclusively known, but an estimated total of 1,600 is the consensus. Between 1,344{{cite news|date=September 10, 2003|title=TWO YEARS LATER: THE 91ST FLOOR; The Line Between Life and Death, Still Indelible|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/10/us/two-years-later-the-91st-floor-the-line-between-life-and-death-still-indelible.html |access-date=November 19, 2022}} and 1,426{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=238}} of these individuals were above the 91st floor when Flight 11 crashed between floors 93 and 99 at 8:46 a.m. Hundreds in the path of the impact or the ensuing flash fire were killed instantly. Some were fatally burned hundreds of feet below as the elevator shafts channeled burning jet fuel down as far as the lobby, where it exploded.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|73}} More than 800 people were believed to have survived the initial crash but were trapped;{{cite news|date=May 26, 2002|title=102 MINUTES: Last Words at the Trade Center; Fighting to Live as the Towers Die|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/102-minutes-last-words-at-the-trade-center-fighting-to-live-as-the-towers-die.html|access-date=November 19, 2022}} the centralized impact into the tower immediately severed all elevator shafts in the central core from the 50th floor upward,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|74}} while all three stairwells in the impact zone were impassable. Seventy people on floor 92, the first floor below the impact zone, were also trapped because the stairwells were destroyed or blocked by debris.{{cite web |url=https://www.harmreductionohio.org/for-many-on-sept-11-survival-was-no-accident/ |title=For many on Sept. 11, survival was no accident |website=www.harmreductionohio.org |date=September 10, 2021 |access-date=15 September 2022}} Those trapped died from smoke inhalation, the fire, jumping or falling from the building, or were killed in the eventual collapse. Although a few people would subsequently be found alive in the rubble following the collapse of the towers, none of these individuals were from the trapped floors.{{cite book |chapter=Heroism and Honor |title=The 9/11 Commission Report |publisher=U.S. Congress |date=August 21, 2004 |url=http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Ch9.htm |access-date=September 8, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070815141749/http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Ch9.htm |archive-date=August 15, 2007 }} Twenty-four people were still officially listed as missing in 2006{{Cite news|url=http://www.september11victims.com/september11victims/STATISTIC.asp|title=24 Remain Missing|date=August 12, 2006|access-date=September 7, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060822065313/http://www.september11victims.com/september11victims/STATISTIC.asp|archive-date=August 22, 2006|publisher=September 11 Victims}} and as of September 2021, the remains of 1,106 victims of the attacks have yet to be identified.

John P. O'Neill was a former assistant director of the FBI who assisted in the capture of 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef and was the head of security at the World Trade Center when he was killed trying to rescue people from the North Tower.{{cite news |title=FBI terrorist expert's body found at WTC |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/21/vic.oneill/index.html |work=CNN |date=21 September 2001 }} Neil David Levin was the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which was the governmental entity that built and owned the World Trade Center complex. He was eating breakfast in the Windows on the World restaurant at the time of the attack on the North Tower.{{cite web |url=http://www.legacy.com/sept11/story.aspx?personid=96336&psl=1 |title=Neil D. Levin |website=www.legacy.com |date=September 22, 2001 |access-date=15 September 2022}} Cantor Fitzgerald L.P., an investment bank on the 101st–105th floors of One World Trade Center, lost 658 employees, considerably more than any other employer, and also lost 46 contractors and visitors.{{cite book|title=A Place of Remembrance: Official Book of the September 11 Memorial|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zatreqeIsR8C&pg=PT173 |author1=Allison Blais|author2= Lynn Rasic|year=211|page=227| publisher=National Geographic Books | isbn=978-1-4262-0807-2 |access-date= 15 September 2022|via=Google Books}} Marsh Inc., located immediately below Cantor Fitzgerald on floors 93–100 (the location of Flight 11's impact), lost 295 employees and 63 consultants.{{cite web| url=http://memorial.mmc.com/| title=Marsh & McLennan Companies 9/11 Memorial| access-date=September 7, 2011| archive-date=August 18, 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110818143251/http://memorial.mmc.com/| url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=http://www.mmc.com/about/history.php |title=Milestones of Marsh & McLennan Companies |access-date=September 7, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426233407/http://www.mmc.com/about/history.php |archive-date=April 26, 2014 }} Risk Waters, a business organization, was holding a conference in Windows on the World at the time, with 81 people in attendance.[http://travel.nytimes.com/2002/09/11/nationchallenged/11RISK.html Citizens of the World, on Time for a Meeting in Harm's Way] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520045648/http://travel.nytimes.com/2002/09/11/nationchallenged/11RISK.html?pagewanted=print&position=top |date=May 20, 2011 }}, The New York Times, September 11, 2001Field, Peter, [http://db.riskwaters.com/public/showPage.html?page=6661 Remembering September 11 The Day I'll Never Forget] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410065212/http://db.riskwaters.com/public/showPage.html?page=6661 |date=April 10, 2008 }}, Risk Waters website

The precise total of people killed in the South Tower has also never been verified, but it is believed that around a thousand civilians and emergency personnel lost their lives in the building that day. The National Institute of Standards and Technology report estimated that between 630 and 701 of these people were WTC employees,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|238}} all but 11 from floors trapped by the impact. Had the South Tower been struck first, Flight 175's hijacking would have been the deadliest suicide attack of the day, as more than 3,500 people were present in Floor 77 or higher at 08:46.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|92}} The 17 minute gap between the two impacts meant this figure had reduced substantially by 09:03.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|96}} More than 300 people were killed instantly by the crash, two-thirds of whom came from the 78th floor sky lobby.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bc.edu/offices/service/about/crowther.html|title=Welles Crowther – Boston College|website=www.bc.edu|access-date=September 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331122128/https://www.bc.edu/offices/service/about/crowther.html|archive-date=March 31, 2019}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newsweek.com/five-who-survived-144813|title=Five Who Survived|date=September 8, 2002|work=Newsweek|access-date=July 8, 2019|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401040323/https://www.newsweek.com/five-who-survived-144813|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html|title=Accounts from the South Tower|date=May 26, 2002|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 8, 2019|archive-date=August 14, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814233011/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/26/nyregion/accounts-from-the-south-tower.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/nation/2021/09/05/9-11-survivor-stories-78-floor-world-trade-center/5452992001/ |title= USA Today|website=www.usatoday.com |access-date=15 September 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}} Those who remained were not completely trapped, but almost all still perished. The causes of death in the South Tower were identical to those in the North Tower, but in much lower numbers. The actions taken by trapped workers suggest that conditions were comparably more tenable in the South Tower than its twin; hundreds of people fell or jumped to their deaths from the North Tower, but almost no one did from the South.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|86}} A total of 18 people from the impact zone escaped the South Tower using Stairwell A, the one stairway left mostly intact and negotiable from top to bottom when the tower was struck. There may have been others from the trapped floors who found Stairwell A but were caught in the collapse before they could escape.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf}}{{rp|239}}{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=314}} The relatively few employees killed below the 77th floor is something the 9/11 Commission noted as being a strong indication that evacuation below the impact zones was a success, allowing most to safely evacuate before the collapse of the World Trade Center.

Morgan Stanley's director of security Rick Rescorla was killed in the collapse of the South Tower when he ventured back in to rescue others still inside the building. In the wake of the 1993 bombing, Rescorla anticipated suicide attacks on the World Trade Center using hijacked planes as missiles. He strongly suspected the crash of Flight 11 was deliberate and ordered an evacuation of Morgan Stanley's offices in the South Tower as a precaution.{{cite news|url=https://eu.jacksonville.com/story/news/2011/09/04/since-911-look-back/10791405007/|title=Since 9/11: A look back|publisher=The Florida Times Union|date=September 4, 2011|access-date=June 9, 2023}} Morgan Stanley lost very few employees that morning, though this was due in large part to their offices being located on floors below the plane impacts rather than any preemptive measures taken by the company. Welles Crowther, a volunteer firefighter and equities trader for Sandler O'Neill and Partners on the 104th floor, similarly lost his own life while voluntarily assisting in the evacuation, whereby he rescued as many as 18 people.{{cite web |author= Scarborough, Chuck |author-link= Scarborough, Chuck |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Welles-Crowther-Man-in-Red-Bandanna-September-11-Hero-Parents-Reflect-15-Years-Later-392922891.html |title=15 Years Later, Parents Grieve 9/11 Hero Welles Crowther: 'I Weep Every Day for My Son' |publisher=NBC News |date=September 11, 2017 |access-date=June 9, 2023 |archive-date=January 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190127101517/https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Welles-Crowther-Man-in-Red-Bandanna-September-11-Hero-Parents-Reflect-15-Years-Later-392922891.html}} In spite of the decision being made to empty the floors occupied by Aon immediately following Flight 11's impact, the company still lost 175 employees in the South Tower,{{cite news|url=http://www.investmentnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070911/REG/70911011 |title=Industry honors fallen on 9/11 anniversary |publisher=InvestmentNews |author=Aaron Siegel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070915130042/http://www.investmentnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070911%2FREG%2F70911011 |archive-date=15 September 2007 |date=11 September 2007 |access-date=23 February 2012 }} the third highest death toll of any firm in the complex. The executive who initiated the evacuation of Aon's offices, Eric Eisenberg, was still above the 76th floor when the South Tower was hit, and was among those killed.

File:Remains of WTC1 and WTC2 after 9-11.jpg shown after the attacks]]

There is no precise number of deaths which occurred within the hotel as many who sheltered in the hotel during and after the collapse of the South Tower were protected by the reinforced beams that had been installed by the Port Authority after the 1993 bombing. However, the pieces of the South Tower did cause catastrophic damage to the hotel, with many claiming the hotel was cut in half by the falling debris, with survivors stating the pressure picked everyone up and carried them through the air. Hotel employees that were protected by the beams were ordered to evacuate while firefighters remained to attempt to dig out those covered by debris. After the collapse of the North Tower additional debris caused those stuck under the debris to be crushed and killed including two hotel employees; Joseph John Keller and Abdu Ali Malahi. Additionally at least 41 firefighters who had been attempting to clear the hotel and 11 of the 940 registered guests were killed.

A USA Today report estimated that approximately 200 people died inside the elevators, while only 21 escaped the elevators. However, it was later found that 16% of those who evacuated the South Tower used an elevator and simulations of the evacuation without elevators claim to show that the use of elevators saved about 3,000 individuals in the South Tower.{{Cite web |last=Kuligowski |first=Erica |date=September 10, 2021 |title=How the terrifying evacuations from the twin towers on 9/11 helped make today's skyscrapers safer |url=http://theconversation.com/how-the-terrifying-evacuations-from-the-twin-towers-on-9-11-helped-make-todays-skyscrapers-safer-167698 |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=The Conversation |language=en}} Many elevators did not plunge when the planes crashed through, but were left stranded in the shafts, leaving their occupants to be burned alive in the fires or trapped and unable to escape before the towers collapsed. With the exception of one case, when the elevators malfunctioned, safety features intended to keep people from plummeting down shafts trapped individuals inside.{{cite news |last1=Cauchon |first1=Dennis |last2=Moore |first2=Martha T. |title=Elevators were disaster within disaster |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-04-elevator-usat_x.htm |access-date=October 27, 2018 |work=USA Today |date=September 4, 2002 |archive-date=October 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010194947/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-09-04-elevator-usat_x.htm |url-status=live }} One survivor recounted having to pry open a narrow gap between the doors of the elevator to escape by utilizing the stairs.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newsweek.com/five-who-survived-144813|title=Five Who Survived|date=September 8, 2002|work=Newsweek|access-date=September 18, 2018|language=en|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401040323/https://www.newsweek.com/five-who-survived-144813|url-status=live}} Similarly, a group of six found themselves trapped inside a North Tower elevator from the moment of impact until 9:30 a.m., when they managed to escape by prying open the doors and tunnelling their way through the sheetrock wall of the elevator shaft behind, still leaving them with nearly an hour to spare until the building gave way.{{Cite web |last1=Magazine |first1=Smithsonian |last2=Py-Lieberman |first2=Beth |title=How a Squeegee Handle Became a Life-Saving Tool on September 11, 2001 |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-squeegee-handle-became-life-saving-tool-september-11-2001-180951515/ |access-date=January 27, 2023|website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}

File:P200098 Photo of Firefighter Danny Suhr on 9-11-01.jpg was killed when a victim from 2 WTC landed on him.]]

As the fires raged inside the towers, some 100–200 people plummeted at speeds of {{cvt|125–200|mph|km/h}},{{cite web |url=https://suicidology-online.com/pdf/SOL-2013-4-117-121.pdf |title=Those who jumped from the Twin Towers on 9/11: Suicides or not? |publisher=Suicidology Online |date=December 8, 2013 |access-date=September 11, 2022 |archive-date=January 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130203925/http://www.suicidology-online.com/pdf/SOL-2013-4-117-121.pdf |url-status=dead }} sufficient to cause instantaneous death upon impact, but not enough to lose consciousness during the drop. Most of the people who fell or jumped from the Twin Towers came from the North Tower with as few as three spotted from the South Tower.{{cite web |website=National Institute of Standards and Technology |title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation |year=2005 |url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av1.pdf |page=86}} In spite of the extremely limited number of victims documented, a fatal accident took place when a person landed on firefighter Danny Suhr as he prepared to enter the South Tower at around 9:30 a.m., crushing his skull and killing him.{{efn|The NIST report documented three victims who fell from the South Tower's east face, including one who either lost his balance or jumped,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=34}} followed by two more who tried to climb down.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=46}}{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=52}} There are conflicting reports that either one of these three, or a possible fourth, was the victim who landed on firefighter Danny Suhr, apparently near the intersection of West and Liberty Streets.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=314}}}}

Most of the people who fell from the World Trade Center are believed to have intentionally jumped to their deaths to escape the extreme heat, thick smoke, chemical exposure and fire, although a number of accidental falls were seen when victims stood too close to the edge or clambered outside. Several attempts to climb down with a view to re-enter through a safe opening were made, none of which succeeded.{{cite web |author=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation |year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av1.pdf|page=67}}{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=46}}{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=52}}{{Cite news |title=Capturing a terror-filled day O'side cameraman featured on Fox 9/11 special |url=https://www.liherald.com/stories/capturing-a-terror-filled-day-oside-cameraman-featured-on-fox-911-special,16043 |author=Joseph Kellard |publisher=L.I. Herald |date=2002-09-26 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220126151032/https://www.liherald.com/stories/capturing-a-terror-filled-day-oside-cameraman-featured-on-fox-911-special,16043 |archive-date=January 26, 2022 |access-date=2022-01-26 |url-status=live }} In some cases, the panicked crowds pushed people out, and victims in free fall struck those who were otherwise reluctant to take the plunge. Futile attempts to use fabric such as clothing as makeshift parachutes were sometimes made.{{cite web|url=https://www.dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/ten-years-later-the-911-photo-that-changed-america|title=Ten Years Later: The 9/11 Photo That Changed America|work=Dissent|date=September 8, 2011|access-date=November 28, 2022 }} Some eyewitnesses believe they saw people jumping in pairs or in groups, and one survivor claimed to have seen as many as six individuals all holding hands as they fell.{{cite web|url=https://www.oxy.edu/news/new-york-stories-20-years-after-911|title=New York Stories: 20 Years After 9/11|work=Occidental College|date=September 11, 2021|access-date=November 28, 2022 }} Victims trapped in each tower made their way toward the rooftops in hope of helicopter rescue, only to find the access doors locked. Security Control employees on the North Tower's 22nd floor attempted to activate a lock release command that would have freed all areas in the World Trade Center influenced by the electronic control systems, including doors leading to the roofs. However, damage done to the electronics by the airplanes precluded any possibility of this order being executed; in any case, thick smoke and intense heat would have prevented rescue helicopters from landing.{{cite book|author=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=219}}

File:WONDER-R1-E008_(cropped).jpg

There has never been an official identification of who any of the specific people were that were filmed or photographed falling from the towers, including the person whose picture became known as The Falling Man. The collapse of the towers before their remains could be removed from the scene made it impossible to determine which of the remains had been from people who fell and which had been killed in the collapse; a spokeswoman for the New York Medical Examiner's Office pointed out that their bodies were in far too similar a state to those who were crushed in the collapse to distinguish them. In seeking to determine where conditions were most dire and in particular which floors the fires were at their most intense, NIST analyzed video footage and photographs of people jumping or falling. Although they recorded 105 victims between each tower, they report that this figure likely understates the true number of those who died in this manner; USA Today suggested that the number of victims from the North Tower was somewhere in the two hundreds. The sight and sound of these individuals falling from the towers, then "smashing like eggs on the ground" horrified and traumatized many witnesses. The death certificates of those who fell state the cause of death was "blunt trauma" due to homicide.{{cite news|url=http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Twin+Towers+jumpers+that+Americans+will+not+talk+about+/-/1056/1234160/-/view/printVersion/-/7j4sru/-/index.html |title=Twin Towers jumpers that Americans will not talk about |work=Daily Nation |date=September 10, 2011 |access-date=September 13, 2011 |author=Smith, David James |location=Nairobi, Kenya |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912235515/http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Twin%2BTowers%2Bjumpers%2Bthat%2BAmericans%2Bwill%2Bnot%2Btalk%2Babout%2B/-/1056/1234160/-/view/printVersion/-/7j4sru/-/index.html |archive-date=September 12, 2011 }}

The discrepancy in the number of falling victims per tower is partly attributable to the differences in each impact as well as Flight 11's impact leaving considerably more victims trapped on a far fewer number of floors. Flight 11 crashed directly midway into the North Tower's central core between floors 93 and 99, destroying all three stairwells (A, B and C) in the impact zone while rendering every single elevator from the 50th floor upward unusable, either by the shafts being severed or the power being cut.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the collapse of the World Trade Center towers|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=74}} Workers on the 92nd floor, though technically beneath the crash line, were also ensnared by debris from the impact zone that had collapsed into the stairs on their floor,{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=303}} and eight of them jumped one after the other less than 12 minutes after the plane impacted immediately above.{{cite web|url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Appendix-M_NIST-NCSTAR_1-5A_Sept2005_PDF-pp227-232.pdf|author=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Observations of Falling Human Beings for WTC 1|year=2005|access-date=June 4, 2023}} In addition to the blaze being densely concentrated within a much smaller number of floors, the centralized impact dispersed burning jet fuel across all four sides of the tower, ensuring there was little to no leeway for those trapped. Windows were broken by trapped occupants seconds after the plane flew into the tower, and the first jumper was spotted less than two minutes following the impact. There were over 800 people confined to a much smaller space than the roughly 300 people in the South Tower, creating a bottleneck effect as the situation became dangerously overcrowded, demonstrated in the Impending Death photograph where dozens of people are depicted hanging from windows along the outside walls of the North Tower, something that was never seen in its twin.

It is highly likely that more people would have been seen falling from the South Tower if it had been the first building to be hit by a hijacked airliner; over 3,500 people occupied the 77th–110th floors at 08:46, around three quarters of whom had escaped from this zone before 09:03.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=92}} The airplane struck the South Tower's southern facade around 25 feet east of the center,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=88}} causing much more of the jet fuel to spray out into the open rather than spilling into the building. The fires were primarily confined to the east, with some spread towards the north and south sides. No impact damage or fire was observed on the west side or on floors above the aircraft's point of entry.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av2.pdf|page=106}} While windows were broken by occupants trapped in both towers, in the South, the locations were far more scarce. The three people recorded falling came from a single window towards the southern portion of the 79th floor's east side,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1-5av1.pdf|pages=79 and 86}} where the worst of the damage had been inflicted and fires were at their most intense,{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the collapse of the World Trade Center towers|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=180}} suggesting conditions were more tolerable elsewhere. With a much lower impact zone of floors 77 and 85, as well as an entire side with no visible fires, those who survived Flight 175's crash were left with far more room to move away from the smoke and flames than those in the North Tower. A major difference between the two crashes is that while Flight 11 eliminated all opportunities for escape above the North Tower's 91st floor, Flight 175's offset approach left the northwesternmost stairwell (Stairway A) physically intact when the plane impacted the eastern part of the south wall near the southeast corner.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=314}} While only 18 people from the trapped floors exited the South Tower safely, one NYPD unit crossed paths with a large group of civilians making their way down an unidentified set of stairs shortly before 09:58,{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=314}} suggesting that other victims could have also been in the process of descending from the impact zone just prior to the collapse.{{cite book|last=National Institute of Standards and Technology|title=Final Reports from the collapse of the World Trade Center towers|year=2005|url=https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/NCSTAR/ncstar1.pdf|page=239}}

{{Main|9/11 conspiracy theories}}

Contrary to some conspiracy theories about Jewish people being warned not to go to work that day, the number of Jewish people who died in the attacks is variously estimated at between 270 and 400, based on the last names of the dead.{{cite web|url=http://usinfo.state.gov/media/Archive/2005/Jan/14-260933.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050408072925/http://usinfo.state.gov/media/Archive/2005/Jan/14-260933.html |archive-date=April 8, 2005 |title=The 4,000 Jews Rumor: Rumor surrounding Sept. 11th proved untrue. Internet Archive – which appeared in the September 12 internet edition of the "Jerusalem Post". It stated, "The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem has so far received the names of 4,000 Israelis believed to have been in the areas of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon at the time of the attacks." |access-date=October 15, 2010}}{{efn|A survey of the 1,700 victims whose religion was listed found approximately 10% were Jewish indicating around 270 in total. A survey based on the last names of victims found that around 400 (15.5%) were possibly Jewish. A survey of 390 Cantor Fitzgerald employees who had public memorials (out of the 658 who died) found 49 were Jewish (12.5%). According to the 2002 American Jewish Year Book, New York State's population was 9% Jewish. Sixty-four per cent of the WTC victims lived in New York State.[http://www.thejewishweek.com/bottom/specialcontent.php3?artid=362 The Mitzvah To Remember (09/05/2002)] Gary Rosenblatt, August 3, 2007 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060506155533/http://www.thejewishweek.com/bottom/specialcontent.php3?artid=362 |date=May 6, 2006 }}}}{{cite web|url=http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-13.htm |title=The Resuscitation of Anti-Semitism: An American Perspective: An Interview with Abraham Foxman |publisher=Jcpa.org |access-date=May 30, 2011| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110608060311/http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-13.htm| archive-date= June 8, 2011 | url-status=live}}

The following list details the number of deaths reported by companies in business premises at the World Trade Center. The list includes WTC tenants (all buildings), vendors, visitors, independent emergency responders, as well as some hijacked passenger-related firms.September 11: One Year After. The Boston Globe; September 11, 2002. This list only includes 2,117 of the victims.

File:Flickr - The U.S. Army - Pentagon 9-11 Memorial.jpg honoring the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon]]

At least 125 people working at the Pentagon were killed, most of whom worked for the United States Army or the United States Navy.{{cite web|title=National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States|publisher=U.S. Congress|date=August 21, 2004|url=http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/index.htm|access-date=September 8, 2006|archive-date=December 26, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191226170238/https://www.9-11commission.gov/report/index.htm|url-status=live}} Of those 125 deaths, 70 were civilians – 47 Army employees, six Army contractors, six Navy employees, three Navy contractors, seven Defense Intelligence Agency employees, and one Office of the Secretary of Defense contractorGoldberg et al., pp. 208–212. – and 55 were members of the United States Armed Forces – 33 Navy sailors and 22 Army soldiers.{{cite web|url=http://www.patriotresource.com/wtc/victims/pentagon.html|title=September 11, 2001 Pentagon Victims|work=patriotresource.com|access-date=April 20, 2015|archive-date=June 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190625175936/http://www.patriotresource.com/wtc/victims/pentagon.html|url-status=live}} Lieutenant General Timothy Maude, an Army Deputy Chief of Staff, was the highest-ranking military official killed at the Pentagon.{{cite web|title=Remembering the Lost|work=Timothy J. Maude, Lieutenant General, United States Army|publisher=Arlington National Cemetery|date=September 22, 2001|url=http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/tjmaude.htm|access-date=April 16, 2001|archive-date=May 23, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523142334/http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/tjmaude.htm|url-status=live}}

The 265 fatalities (not including the 19 hijackers) aboard the four planes included:{{Cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/09/11/chronology.attack/|title=September 11: Chronology of terror|date=September 12, 2001|work=Cable News Network|access-date=January 23, 2015|archive-date=October 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191008205042/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/09/11/chronology.attack/|url-status=live}}

• 87 civilians (including 11 crew members), excluding the five hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 11
• 60 civilians (including 9 crew members), excluding the five hijackers aboard United Airlines Flight 175{{cite magazine|url=http://www.nationalgeographic.com/remembering-9-11/place-of-remembrance|title=A Place of Remembrance|magazine=National Geographic|access-date=September 5, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012201444/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/remembering-9-11/place-of-remembrance|archive-date=October 12, 2011}}
• 59 civilians (including 6 crew members), excluding the five hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77
• 39 civilians (including 7 crew members), a United States Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement officer,{{citation |url=http://names.lawmemorial.org/officers/g/richard-jerry-guadagno.html |title=Richard Jerry Guadagno |publisher=National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial |access-date=May 16, 2019 |archive-date=March 6, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306110109/http://names.lawmemorial.org/officers/g/richard-jerry-guadagno.html |url-status=live }} excluding the four hijackers aboard United Airlines Flight 93.{{cite web|url=https://www.archives.gov/research/9-11/staff-report-sept2005.pdf |title=Staff Monograph on the Four Flights and Civil Aviation Security |date=September 2005 |publisher=National Archives and Records Administration |access-date=September 5, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140712075041/http://www.archives.gov/research/9-11/staff-report-sept2005.pdf |archive-date=July 12, 2014 }}[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/us/19memorial.html Flight 93 Memorial Effort Gains Over 900 Acres] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611152907/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/us/19memorial.html |date=June 11, 2019 }}, The New York Times, March 19, 2008

The dead included eight children: five on American Airlines Flight 77, aged 3 to 11,[http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/12/victim-capsule-flight77.htm American Flight 77 victims at a glance.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010151619/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/12/victim-capsule-flight77.htm |date=October 10, 2019 }}, USA Today, September 25, 2011. and three on United Airlines Flight 175, aged 2, 3, and 4.USA Today: [http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/12/victim-capsule-flight175.htm United Flight 175 victims at a glance.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191001154159/https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2001/09/12/victim-capsule-flight175.htm |date=October 1, 2019 }} September 25, 2011. The youngest victim was a two-and-a-half-year-old child on Flight 175 and the oldest was an 85-year-old passenger on Flight 11.{{cite news|last=Susman|first=Tina|title=At Sept. 11 sites, a powerful day of remembrance|url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-xpm-2011-sep-11-la-na-911-ground-zero-20110912-story.html|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|access-date=March 27, 2012|date=September 11, 2011|archive-date=December 21, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131221172915/http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/11/nation/la-na-911-ground-zero-20110912|url-status=live}}

Among those notable passengers killed on Flight 11 were television producer David Angell, who co-created the sitcoms Frasier and Wings,{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/pictures/image/0,8543,-10404256105,00.html|title=US terrorism victims|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=September 12, 2013|archive-date=March 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323154821/https://www.theguardian.com/pictures/image/0,8543,-10404256105,00.html|url-status=live}} actress Berry Berenson, widow of Anthony Perkins,[http://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=4444 "Berry Berenson Perkins"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727095710/http://names.911memorial.org/ |date=July 27, 2013 }}. Memorial Guide: National 9/11 Memorial. Retrieved October 28, 2011. filmmaker Carolyn Beug, who produced the music video for "Right Now" by Van Halen, entrepreneur Daniel Lewin, who co-founded internet company Akamai Technologies,{{cite web|author=Jager, Ron|url=http://www.5tjt.com/local-news/11694-danny-lewin-the-first-victim-of-911|title=Danny Lewin: The First Victim Of 9/11|publisher=5TJT|date=September 8, 2011|access-date=September 19, 2021|archive-date=October 17, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111017194106/http://5tjt.com/local-news/11694-danny-lewin-the-first-victim-of-911}} and astronaut Charles Edward Jones.[http://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=4393 Carolyn Mayer Beug] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727095710/http://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=4393 |date=2013-07-27 }}. Memorial Guide: National 9/11 Memorial. Retrieved December 11, 2011.{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/trade.center/victims/AA11.victims.html |title=American Airlines Flight 11 – Victims |work=CNN|access-date=June 6, 2008| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080516104740/http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/trade.center/victims/AA11.victims.html| archive-date = May 16, 2008}} Ice hockey players Garnet Bailey and Mark Bavis were travelling on Flight 175 when it was hijacked.{{Cite news|last=Blum|first=Ronald|date=September 13, 2001|title=Sports World at a Standstill|page=3B|work=The Monitor (McAllen, Texas)}} Physicist William E. Caswell,[https://names.911memorial.org/#lang=en_US&page=person&id=35 William E. Caswell]. Memorial Guide: National 9/11 Memorial. Retrieved October 28, 2011. Barbara Olson, television political commentator and the wife of then-U.S. Solicitor General Theodore Olson,{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/11/pentagon.olson/ |title=Wife of Solicitor General alerted him of hijacking from plane |work=CNN|date=September 12, 2001 |access-date=July 11, 2017 |archive-date=April 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411194039/http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/11/pentagon.olson/ |url-status=live }} retired U.S. Navy Rear admiral Wilson Flagg,{{cite web|url=https://www.fold3.com/page/636375830_wilson_falor_flagg/|publisher=Fold3|title=Wilson Falor Flagg |access-date=January 7, 2021|archive-date=February 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206193204/https://www.fold3.com/page/636375830_wilson_falor_flagg/}} and women's gymnastics coach Mari-Rae Sopper were aboard Flight 77.

[[File:Map of countries with September 11 casualties.svg|thumb|Map of countries with September 11 casualties{{legend|#0066ff|Countries with citizens who were victims of 9/11}}

{{legend|#ff2a2a|Countries with citizens who were terrorists during 9/11}}

{{legend|#9955ff|Countries with citizens who were both terrorists and victims (Lebanon)}} ]]

While almost all of the passengers and crew who perished on the flights were killed in the ensuing plane crashes, some were murdered with knives or box cutters during the hijackings. It is believed that occurred at least{{efn|On Flights 11 and 93, it is believed but never been definitively confirmed that the pilots were murdered during the takeover as well.}} once on Flight 11 and twice on flights 175 and 93. There were no reports of hijackers being violent on Flight 77, although it was noted that they were carrying knives regardless and threatened their hostages with them.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=27}} It is suspected that on Flight 11, passenger Daniel Lewin's throat was slit after attempting to prevent the hijacking in some way or simply as a result of the terrorists trying to intimidate the passengers into submission,{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=23}} while Mark Rothenberg on Flight 93 may have been killed for the same reasons.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/26/arts/united-93-and-the-politics-of-heroism.html|title='United 93' and the politics of heroism|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 26, 2006|last1=Longman|first1=Jere}} One passenger aboard Flight 93 said a flight attendant had been killed without identifying her.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=31}} A process of elimination determined that Rothenberg was murdered in the early stages of the hijacking. On Flight 11, crew members Betty Ong{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=23}} and Amy Sweeney{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=24}} reported separately that several people had been attacked with knives, including a man (Lewin) who had his throat slashed. Shortly after Flight 175 was commandeered by the terrorists, flight attendant Robert Fangman mentioned specifically that both pilots had been killed, adding that other crew members were non-fatally injured.{{sfn|9/11 Commission|2004a|p=25}}

At the time of the September 11 attacks, items like firearms and pepper spray were categorized as hazardous and could not be brought on-board without the airline's permission. However, pocket utility knives with a blade less than four inches in length were not prohibited; the hijackers took advantage of that fact to carry out the attacks.{{cite web|url=https://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/staff_statements/staff_statement_3.pdf|title=The Aviation Security System and the 9/11 Attacks|access-date=February 13, 2023}}

File:President Vladimir Putin visited the site of the tragedy of 911.jpg signs a condolence wall for casualties who were foreigners]]

Excluding the 19 perpetrators (15 of whom came from Saudi Arabia, two from the UAE, and one each from Egypt and Lebanon), at least 372 people from 102 countries besides the United States died.{{cite web|title = Why September 12 matters so much|date=September 8, 2020 |url=https://ge.usembassy.gov/why-september-12-matters-so-much/}} Below is a list of the nationalities of the foreign victims:

File:NYPD ESU at WTC.jpg

During the attacks and afterwards, there was a large amount of toxic dust, debris and ash that was centralized around Ground Zero and created long-term health problems. Toxic materials such as asbestos, lead, and mercury were in the air and the debris, and many first responders and victims did not wear respirators.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/10/epa-head-wrong-911-air-safe-new-york-christine-todd-whitman|title=Former EPA head admits she was wrong to tell New Yorkers post-9/11 air was safe|last=Walters|first=Joanna|date=September 10, 2016|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=September 12, 2018|archive-date=January 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200108063918/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/10/epa-head-wrong-911-air-safe-new-york-christine-todd-whitman|url-status=live}}

It was reported in 2018 that at least 15 FBI agents had died from cancer due to their roles in the aftermath and investigation of the attack.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/fbi-employees-grapple-9-11-related-illnesses-deaths-n908626|title=FBI employees grapple with 9/11-related illnesses, deaths|work=NBC News|access-date=September 12, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=September 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190923191021/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/fbi-employees-grapple-9-11-related-illnesses-deaths-n908626|url-status=live}} Further, a medical director of the World Trade Center Health Program at Mount Sinai Hospital reported in 2018 that out of the approximately 10,000 first responders and others who were at Ground Zero and have developed cancer as a result, more than 2,000 have died due to 9/11 related illnesses.{{Cite news|url=https://600wmtradio.iheart.com/content/2018-09-11-deaths-from-9-11-illnesses-will-outnumber-those-lost/|title=Deaths From 9/11 Illnesses Will Outnumber Those Lost|work=AM 600 WMT – NewsRadio|access-date=September 12, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401031139/https://600wmtradio.iheart.com/content/2018-09-11-deaths-from-9-11-illnesses-will-outnumber-those-lost/|url-status=live}} The Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York also reported over 170 deaths of firefighters due to 9/11-related illnesses, and that roughly 1 in 8 firefighters who were at Ground Zero have developed cancer.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43498200|title=Obituary: The 9/11 rescuers who died a day apart|last=Hughes|first=Roland|date=March 25, 2018|work=BBC News|access-date=September 12, 2018|language=en-GB|archive-date=August 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190804064946/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43498200|url-status=live}} At least 221 policemen have died in the years since 2001 from illnesses related to the attacks in New York City.{{Cite web |url=https://www.odmp.org/search?state=new-york&cause=9%2F11+related+illness |title=The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP) |access-date=September 2, 2019 |archive-date=April 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409053305/http://www.odmp.org/search?state=new-york&cause=9%2F11+related+illness |url-status=live }}

In 2020, the NYPD confirmed that 247 NYPD police officers had died due to 9/11-related illnesses. In September 2022, the FDNY confirmed that the total number of firefighters that died due to 9/11-related illnesses was 299. Both agencies believe that the death toll will rise dramatically in the coming years. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department (PAPD), which is the law enforcement agency which has jurisdiction over the World Trade Center due to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey owning the site, has confirmed that four of its police officers have died of 9/11-related illnesses. The chief of the PAPD at the time, Joseph Morris, made sure that industrial-grade respirators were provided to all PAPD police officers within 48 hours and decided that the same 30 to 40 police officers would be stationed at the World Trade Center pile, drastically lowering the number of total PAPD personnel who would be exposed to the air. The FDNY and NYPD had rotated hundreds, if not thousands, of different personnel from all over New York City to the pile which exposed so many of them to dust that would give them cancer or other diseases years or decades later. Also, they were not given adequate respirators and breathing equipment that could have prevented future diseases.{{cite web |url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/nypd/about/memorials/9-11-tribute.page |title=9/11 Tribute |website=www1.nyc.gov |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/fdny/news/022-22/fdny-adds-37-names-memorial-wall-deaths-related-world-trade-center-illnesses#/0 |title=FDNY Adds 37 Names to Memorial Wall for Deaths Related to World Trade Center Illnesses |website=www1.nyc.gov |date=September 13, 2022 |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www.thechiefleader.com/stories/port-authority-police-union-leader-still-pain-for-families-of-911-cops-free-article,6828 |title=Port Authority Police-Union Leader: Still Pain for Families of 9/11 Cops |website=www.thechiefleader.com |date=September 10, 2018 |access-date=19 September 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/september-11/ny-9-11-port-authority-police-saved-lives-20210906-gtmdsurzt5fjxaqhp6bdiq3x3q-story.html |title=Swift action on 9/11 by NYC's Port Authority police saved lives |website=www.nydailynews.com |date=September 6, 2021 |access-date=19 September 2022}}

On September 25, 2023, the FDNY reported that with the death of EMT Hilda Vannata and retired firefighter Robert Fulco, marking the 342nd and 343rd deaths from 9/11-related illnesses, the department had now lost the same number of firefighters, EMTs, and civilian members to 9/11-related illnesses as it did on the day of the attacks.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/fdny-loses-343rd-member-to-911-related-illness-as-many-as-died-on-day-of-attacks/|title=FDNY loses 343rd member to 9/11 related illness -- as many as died on day of attacks|publisher=CBS New York|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=September 25, 2023|access-date=September 25, 2023|archive-date=September 25, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230925140642/https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/fdny-loses-343rd-member-to-911-related-illness-as-many-as-died-on-day-of-attacks/}}{{cite web|url=https://abc7ny.com/fdny-death-toll-september-11-emt-911-related-illness/13824058/|title=FDNY lives lost from 9/11-related illnesses now matches death toll from the day|work=ABC7 New York |publisher=WABC-TV|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=September 25, 2023|access-date=September 25, 2023|archive-date=September 25, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230925140931/https://abc7ny.com/fdny-death-toll-september-11-emt-911-related-illness/13824058/}}

Due to the mass amount of debris and the scale of the towers, many of those who were killed in the attacks were not found intact. It was reported that only 174 complete bodies were recovered from Ground Zero, out of the about 2,753 deceased. Many fragments were found in recovered shoes or pieces of clothing or pockets made from large pieces of debris, with 19,979 fragments recovered from Ground Zero.{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Dennis |title=A Decade of Hope: Stories of Grief and Endurance from 9/11 Families and Friends |publisher=Penguin Group |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-670-02293-9 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=105 |language=en}}

Identifications through DNA can be made by comparing the DNA profile of reference samples with those found in the human remains, through obtaining samples from personal items (toothbrush/hairbrush), banked biological samples, relatives, or other identified remains.{{Cite journal|last=Ritter|first=Nancy|title=Identifying Remains: Lessons Learned From 9/11|url=https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/jr000256f.pdf|journal=National Institute of Justice Journal|volume=256|pages=20–26|access-date=September 11, 2018|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401032621/https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/jr000256f.pdf|url-status=live}} The extreme heat, pressures and contamination from the collapse of the buildings has caused some of the DNA to become degraded and unusable.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/dna-advances-provide-new-avenue-to-9-11-identifications-1.14126035|title=DNA advances enhance IDs of 9/11 victims|work=Newsday|access-date=September 11, 2018|language=en|archive-date=July 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725233159/https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/dna-advances-provide-new-avenue-to-9-11-identifications-1.14126035|url-status=live}} Samples were also degraded because some body fragments remained in the rubble for 8 to 10 months.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20878-massive-dna-effort-to-name-1121-unknown-dead-of-911/|title=Massive DNA effort to name 1121 unknown dead of 9/11|work=New Scientist|access-date=September 11, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401055533/https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20878-massive-dna-effort-to-name-1121-unknown-dead-of-911/|url-status=live}} In response to this, the medical examiner's office and other scientific groups created new techniques to process the bone fragments. The Associated Press reported that the medical examiner's office possesses "about 10,000 unidentified bone and tissue fragments that cannot be matched to the list of the dead".{{cite news | title = Ground Zero Forensic Work Ends | work = CBS News | date = February 23, 2005 | url = https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ground-zero-forensic-work-ends/ | access-date = September 8, 2006 | archive-date = December 25, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181225172509/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ground-zero-forensic-work-ends/ | url-status = live }} Bone fragments were still being found in 2006 as workers prepared the damaged Deutsche Bank Building for demolition.{{cite web|title=Bone fragments are found |url=http://www.xtimeline.com/evt/view.aspx?id=111611 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130624204402/http://www.xtimeline.com/evt/view.aspx?id=111611 |archive-date=June 24, 2013 |website=xtimeline |access-date=June 22, 2013 }}

In order to extract the DNA, medical examiners pulverize the fragments, and compare the extracted DNA to the collection of genetic material from victims and/or their relatives, with scientists revisiting bone fragments multiple times in an attempt to identify the victims.{{Cite news|url=https://www.forensicmag.com/news/2017/08/9-11-victims-remains-identified-nearly-16-years-later|title=9/11 Victim's Remains Identified Nearly 16 Years Later|date=August 8, 2017|work=Forensic Magazine|access-date=September 11, 2018|language=en|archive-date=September 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180911225307/https://www.forensicmag.com/news/2017/08/9-11-victims-remains-identified-nearly-16-years-later|url-status=live}}

{{as of|2012|September|11|df=US}}, a total of 2,753 death certificates had been filed relating to the attacks.{{cite web|url=http://www.tnonline.com/2012/sep/11/we-choose-not-forget|title=We choose not to forget|website=tnonline.com|access-date=June 22, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403183543/https://www.tnonline.com/2012/sep/11/we-choose-not-forget|archive-date=April 3, 2019}} Of these, 1,588 (58%) were forensically identified from recovered physical remains.{{Cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/02/22/wtc.identifications/|title=Identification of 9/11 remains comes to an end|date=February 23, 2005|work=Cable News Network|access-date=February 23, 2005|archive-date=April 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406022747/http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/02/22/wtc.identifications/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2005-02-23-sept11-ids_x.htm|work=USA Today|last1=Moore|first1=Martha T.|date=February 24, 2005|title=NYC's work to ID 9/11 victims ends – for now|access-date=February 23, 2005|archive-date=October 30, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081030110131/http://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2005-02-23-sept11-ids_x.htm|url-status=live}}

On April 17, 2013, five possible remains were recovered after being sifted at Fresh Kills Landfill on Staten Island. The medical examiner said evidence of a possible victim of the attacks was recovered as well two days later.{{cite news|title=More Potential Human Remains Identified In WTC Sifting |url=http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/180759/more-potential-human-remains-identified-in-wtc-sifting |work=NY1 |access-date=April 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512140753/http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/180759/more-potential-human-remains-identified-in-wtc-sifting |archive-date=May 12, 2013 }} On June 21, 2013, the medical examiner's office matched its 1,637th victim, a 43-year-old woman, to its list of victims as a result of DNA testing of debris collected from the site. By family request, her name was not released.{{cite news|title=ME's Office: Victim Of September 11th Attacks Identified By ID Testing Of Remains |url=http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/184292/me-s-office--victim-of-september-11th-attacks-identified-by-id-testing-of-remains |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130624204353/http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/184292/me-s-office--victim-of-september-11th-attacks-identified-by-id-testing-of-remains |archive-date=June 24, 2013 |work=NY1 |access-date=June 22, 2013 }} On July 5, 2013, the medical examiner's office identified the remains of FDNY firefighter Lt. Jeffrey P. Walz, 37, after they were retested. His remains were recovered months after the attack and was the 1,638th victim forensically identified.{{cite news|title=12 years later: Remains of firefighter killed in 9/11 attacks identified|url=http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/05/us/new-york-9-11-remains/index.html|work=CNN|access-date=July 6, 2013|date=July 6, 2013|archive-date=April 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406070259/https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/05/us/new-york-9-11-remains/index.html|url-status=live}}

On August 7, 2017, the medical examiner's office matched its 1,641st victim. The victim was identified through retesting of DNA from remains recovered in 2001.{{cite news|title=New World Trade Center victim identified, city ME says|url=http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/new-world-trade-center-victim-identified-city-me-says-1.13947564|work=Newsday|date=August 7, 2017|access-date=August 8, 2017|archive-date=August 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808075706/http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/new-world-trade-center-victim-identified-city-me-says-1.13947564|url-status=live}} In 2017 it was reported that only 1,641 victims, or just under 60%, had identified remains. On July 25, 2018, the medical examiner's office matched its 1,642nd victim. The victim, 26-year-old Scott Michael Johnson, was identified through the retesting of DNA from remains recovered in 2001.{{cite news|title=Keeping Its Promise to Families, New York Identifies Another 9/11 Victim|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/25/nyregion/9-11-victim-nyc.html|work=The New York Times|date=July 30, 2018|access-date=July 30, 2018|archive-date=July 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728080550/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/25/nyregion/9-11-victim-nyc.html|url-status=live}} {{As of|2019|October}}, three additional victims were successfully identified over the course of the year, bringing the total number of identified victims to 1,645. 1,108 remaining victims, representing 40% of those who perished in the World Trade Center attacks were still yet to be identified.{{cite news|title=New York 9/11 Victim Identified 18 Years After Attack|url=https://www.wnep.com/article/news/new-york-9-11-victim-identified-18-years-after-attack/523-5d8a00b6-4e72-4d47-a5c1-a9d8f89ec82c|work=ABC WNEP-16|date=October 18, 2019|access-date=February 13, 2021|archive-date=August 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808125056/https://www.wnep.com/article/news/new-york-9-11-victim-identified-18-years-after-attack/523-5d8a00b6-4e72-4d47-a5c1-a9d8f89ec82c|url-status=live}}

In 2021, four days before the 20th anniversary of the attacks, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office announced that the identification of the 1,646th and 1,647th persons: Dorothy Morgan of Hempstead, Long Island, and an unnamed man whose identity was withheld at the request of his family.{{cite news|title=2 new 9/11 victims identified through DNA testing, first new IDs since Oct. 2019|url=https://www.audacy.com/wwjnewsradio/news/national/2-new-9-11-victims-identified-through-dna-testing-first-new-ids-since-oct-2019|date=September 7, 2021|access-date=September 7, 2021}}

On September 8, 2023, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office announced that it had identified two more people using new DNA technology. The identities of these two people, the 1,648th and 1,649th people to be identified forensically, were withheld from release at the request of the victims' families. As of September 11, 2023, 1,104 victims have yet to be identified.{{Cite web |last1=Sgueglia |first1=Kristina |last2=Sottile |first2=Zoe |date=2023-09-08 |title=Two new 9/11 victims identified, the first identifications in two years |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/08/us/september-11-new-victim-identifications/index.html |access-date=2023-09-10 |website=CNN}}

• List of victims of the September 11 attacks
• Health effects arising from the September 11 attacks
• Alicia Esteve Head, self-proclaimed survivor of the attacks who was later revealed to be a fraud
• Killing of Henryk Siwiak {{ndash}} aside from the terrorist attacks, the only homicide recorded in New York City for September 11, 2001
• September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows
• World Trade Center Health Program

{{clear}}

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/17/nyregion/17BURN.html|title=The Injured: A Fireball, a Prayer to Die, Then an Uphill Battle for Life|work=The New York Times|date=October 17, 2001}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/03/nyregion/03BATT.html |title=The Battery Is Down, All Right; Once Happily Isolated, an Area Is Now Badly Crippled|work=The New York Times|date= October 3, 2001}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/01/nyregion/01MOUR.html |title=THE MOURNER: In a Landscape of Sadness, Offering Just Her Presence|work=The New York Times|date= October 1, 2001}} The story of Carol O'Neill, wife of a founder of Sandler O'Neill, which lost 67 of 180 employees.
• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/21/nyregion/21EVAC.html |title=THE TRADE CENTER: The Evacuation That Kept a Horrible Toll From Climbing Higher|work=The New York Times|date= September 21, 2001}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Attacks-Pentagon.html |agency=AP|work=The New York Times|title=190 Feared Dead at the Pentagon}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/13/nyregion/13CND-RESCUE.html |work=The New York Times|title=Hopes Are Raised, and Dashed, About Rescue of Firefighters|date= September 13, 2011}}
• {{cite book|url=http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/twintowers/twintowers.html?dcitc=w01-104-ae-0010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917162009/http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/twintowers/twintowers.html?dcitc=w01-104-ae-0010 |archive-date=September 17, 2008 |publisher=Discovery Channel|title=Inside the Twin Towers}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/collateral-damage-5363427.html |title=Collateral Damage, The forgotten Muslim victims of 11 September 2001|work=The Independent|date= October 11, 2001}}
• {{cite news|url=https://medium.com/s/story/9-11-the-ordinary-and-the-extraordinary-5ddc810057f2|author=Fussman, Cal|title="I Now Know What It's Like to Have A 110-Story Building Come Down on My Head." An unforgettable story of survival and rebirth on the anniversary of 9/11 |work=Medium|date=September 11, 2017}}

{{Commons category-inline}}

• {{Cite web |title=Names on the 9/11 Memorial|publisher=National September 11 Memorial & Museum|url=https://www.911memorial.org/visit/memorial/names-911-memorial|website=www.911memorial.org}}
• {{cite web|website=9-11Heroes.us|url=http://www.9-11heroes.us/victims-world-trade-center.php|title=Victims of 9-11: World Trade Center}}
• {{cite web|url=http://www.nyfd.com/9_11_wtc.html|publisher=New York City Fire Department|title=THE UNOFFICIAL HOME PAGE OF FDNY: A NEVER ENDING STORY}}
• {{cite web|url=http://en.abna24.com/service/america/archive/2016/05/18/755001/story.html|title=US Senate passes bill allowing 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia|publisher=Ahlulbayt TV|date=May 18, 2016}}
• {{cite web|title=Federal Investigators Classify WTC Victims' Locations Within Collapsed Buildings |url=https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2004/07/federal-investigators-classify-wtc-victims-locations-within-collapsed|publisher=NIST|date=July 20, 2004}}

{{September 11 attacks|state=expanded}}{{Casualties of the September 11 attacks}}{{World Trade Center}}

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Category:Survivors of the September 11 attacks

Category:People associated with the September 11 attacks