This week the issue of health problems among Ground Zero rescue workers and Lower Manhattan residents gained national attention. Respected New York Congressional Leaders Reps. Fossella and Maloney were joined by Senators Clinton and Schumer to call for the creation of a “9/11 Health Czar” to monitor the health issues related to exposure Ground Zero. VOICES fully supports this effort to support those who selflessly risked their lives in the days and months after 9/11.

Plans for the WTC Memorial and Museum site continue to be in the news. After attending a Family Advisory meeting this week I share the concerns of many family members about the safety and security of the site. Although we were assured that the memorial will be built according to New York City fire and building codes we have concerns such as the elimination of two of the four entrance and exit ramps and the reliance on stairwells for evacuation from an underground memorial. The safety of visitors to the WTC Memorial is paramount and we will continue to advocate for a safe and respectful memorial. More information on the Family Advisory meeting is included in our newsletter.

As always, feel free to contact us by phone at (866) 505-3911 or by email if we can be of any assistance to you or your family.

Warm Regards,

When: Sunday, January 29, 2005
Time: 1:00 pm start
Where: The Manor Restaurant, 917 Manor Restaurant, Staten Island, NY
Contact: maffeofoundation@aol.com or 718-227-0812 for more information

There will be 6 tables of 10 players with the winner from each table advancing to a final table. The grand prize is a "Brand New 2005 Pontiac Aztec" followed by cash prizes of $2000, $1500, $1000, $750 & $500 for the second thru sixth place finishers. The buy in is $500 per player and Visa and MasterCard are accepted. Contact them for details and registration information as space is going fast. All proceeds from this event benefit the Joseph Maffeo Foundation & Children's Program at Staten Island University.

Please click here to send us information on your memorial or foundation event. The information will be posted on the VOICES website and included in upcoming e-Newsletters.

The LMDC announced plans this week to break ground on the controversial WTC Memorial and Museum on March 13. According to a timeline on the WTC Memorial Foundation website, the concrete foundations for the WTC Memorial and Museum will be poured this Spring. The Foundation is committed to moving forward on the Memorial despite criticism from 9/11 family members who say the current plans are unsafe and will not appropriately honor the sacrifices of 9/11 victims. Gov. Pataki's top adviser for Ground Zero security claims that the site’s current design has been reviewed by security consultants and the NYPD, according to a recent New York Post article. The State official, James Kallstrom, also promised that the WTC Memorial and Museum would be built under the jurisdiction of New York City building and fire codes at an LMDC Family Advisory Committee meeting Tuesday. Many 9/11 Family groups have expressed concerns that the Memorial would be dangerous to visitors if it was exempted from the building codes. A statement from the Skyscraper Safety Campaign noted Kallstrom's promise, but urged vigilance to make sure the LMDC and WTC Memorial Foundation stick to the letter of the safety code.

On Thursday, the Take Back the Memorial Coalition issued a press release calling for the WTC Memorial Museum, currently envisioned as a 100,000 sq. ft. underground space, to be moved into the planned Snohetta Building adjacent to the Memorial area. The Snohetta Building was to house the International Freedom Center before Gov. George Pataki (Rep.) ordered it off the site last October. “The story of 9/11 and its victims deserve a prominent presence at street level. Instead, LMDC has buried the story, putting the safety and security of future visitors in peril,” the press release states. To read more about the WTC Memorial and the ongoing debate over its future visit the Memorial Foundation’s Website as well as the Homepage of Take Back the Memorial.

Port Authority Executive Director Kenneth Ringler announced this week that 2006 will bring a sharp increase in activity at the dormant WTC site. "It's going to be a year when people are actually going to start seeing activity. By the end of 2006, we estimate there will be 1,000 construction workers here," Ringler is quoted in a New York Daily News article. Ringler added that construction of the new PATH terminal and foundation work for the 9/11 Memorial and Museum will begin early this year, according to an Associated Press article. Other projects include a revamped Fulton Street subway complex and, by the end of the year, the 1,776 ft. Freedom Tower.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg outlined an ambitious agenda for Ground Zero in his State of the City speech yesterday in Staten Island. Bloomberg criticized long delays in construction, and suggested that developer Larry Silverstein should relinquish control of part of the site to speed development. "We need [redevelopment] now, to advance our economy and pay tribute to those who died there -- not a decade and a half in the future, when it fits a developer's financial plan," Bloomberg is quoted in an Associated Press article.

The developer's master plan for a group of smaller skyscrapers clustered around the 1,776 ft. Freedom Tower is scheduled for completion in 2015. Bloomberg has often blamed Silverstein, who holds a 99-year lease for the WTC site, for delays in construction at Ground Zero. Silverstein rejects the charges, and yesterday told Bloomberg News that "government bureaucracies'' were to blame because the Port Authority has not yet prepared the site for construction. In today's New York Times, reporter Charles Bagli outlines the history of the contentious relationship between the Mayor and the developer.

Bloomberg and Silverstein also have wrangled in the past over what the city needs in a revitalized Lower Manhattan. Silverstein insists that all 10 million square feet of commercial office space lost in the WTC attacks must be rebuilt. The Mayor insists that the future of Ground Zero should be mixed residential, retail and commercial zones to "reflect the realities of the market and the needs of lower Manhattan," as he stated Thursday. Silverstein has maintained that commercial demand is strong, and received some support for his position this week when a consortium of Chinese business leaders rented the top four floors of the recently completed WTC 7 for a conference center. An LMDC press release offers more information on the planned China Center.

The Gear Up Foundation honors the sacrifice of FDNY members and all who were lost on 9/11 by helping local volunteers in the developing world become effective firefighters. The Foundation provides equipment and training to fire fighting organizations, which often have little more than bucket brigades, in South America and Asia. According to Gear Up Foundation Chairman and Founder, 9/11 volunteer firefighter Vincent Forras: “Through our noble actions, we bring people and nations closer while continuing to save lives. What better tribute can we offer those who perished, and their loved ones, than to do great deeds in their name.”

Gear Up Foundation programs include donations of equipment, the establishment of firefighter training academies, and fire safety education for children. The program began in Ecuador in 2002 and has expanded to the Philippines and Thailand. The photo above shows FDNY Chief Tom Harrigan with Philipine firefighters he helped train. Gear Up Foundation also supports firefighter brethren affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. To learn more about this exceptional organization and help to advance their inspiring mission, please visit the Gear Up website.

NY Congressional Leaders Call for "9/11 Health Czar"

New York Congressional Representatives Carolyn Maloney (Dem.) and Vito Fossella (Rep.) joined a group of 9/11 recovery workers and supporters at the WTC site Wednesday to call for increased federal funding and oversight for Ground Zero workers and Lower Manhattan residents. Fossella and Maloney are requesting that the government create a “Ground Zero Health Czar” to coordinate and monitor the federal health care and support programs. In a letter to Michael Leavitt, the federal Health and Human Services secretary, 17 legislators - including New York Sens. Hillary Clinton and Chuck Schumer - express "grave concerns" about the recent deaths, according to a New York Daily News report. The New York delegation urges him to appoint a health professional to coordinate the federal government's response to the illnesses faced by some of the 40,000 who responded to the site after Sept. 11.

The Representatives also called for increased federal funding to match the severity of the ongoing health crisis, claiming that thousands of recovery workers face chronic health problems because of their service at Ground Zero. "They worked on this pile behind us, and they were exposed to a cocktail of poisonous gases, toxins, pulverized cement and glass, and these particles are still in their bodies, still in their lungs, and many of them are becoming sick,'' Maloney is quoted in a CNN.com article. According to the Daily News, nearly 5,200 emergency responders have filed a class-action suit that alleges the city and its contractors didn't do enough to protect them from a toxic environment at Ground Zero.

VOICES fully supports the New York Delegation in their request for a firm federal commitment to health care for Ground Zero workers and Downtown residents. “The first responders put themselves in harm’s way to help during our nation’s darkest hours. They must have the same commitment from our government to support them during their time of need," said VOICES Founding Director Mary Fetchet in a press release supporting the appointment of a “9/11 Health Czar.” See also a statement of support issued by Senator Clinton.

Ohio launches anti-terror nerve center -- The Ohio Department of Public Safety is unveiling a new center to identify possible terrorist activity by harnessing the brainpower of state agencies that regulate agriculture, traffic, waterways, public health and other areas (Columbus, OH Dispatch)

Five Fixes for Homeland Security by the Fifth Anniversary of the Attacks -- The coming anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is a reminder of the urgency for the administration and Congress to act (James Carafano, Heritage Foundation)

Hurricane Holds Lessons for Terrorism, Nagin Says -- New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin yesterday said the heavily criticized government response to Hurricane Katrina illustrates the need for a faster and reorganized national system for responding to all large-scale disasters, including terrorist attacks (Global Security Newswire)

Click here for a list of ongoing medical offerings for Ground Zero workers