NEW YORK: Three retired firemen who worked at ground zero have died on the same day from cancer, an illness that many fear might be connected to toxic World Trade Centre dust released on Sept 11, fire officials said on Thursday.

Lt Howard Bischoff, 58, and firefighters Robert Lea­ver, 56, and Daniel Heglund, 58, died within hours of one another on Monday.

Their deaths “are a painful reminder that 13 years later we continue to pay a terrible price for the department’s heroic efforts,” Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said in a statement. Thousands of people who aided in the rescue and recovery effort were diagnosed with respiratory ailments and other health problems in the years after the attacks. Cancer, though, remains the biggest fear for people exposed to the gritty soot at the site.

Hundreds of first responders have gotten cancer in the 13 years since the attacks, but doctors and researchers are still uncertain whether there is any link between those illnesses and 9/11. Cancer is the leading cause of death for Americans in their mid-40s to mid-60s, making it hard to tell which deaths, if any, might be related. Most medical studies have not found evidence of a substantial surge in cancer rates, though researchers have spotted some worrisome trends.

Congress has set aside $2.78 billion to compensate people with illnesses that might be related to the attacks. Administrators of the fund have included the most common types of cancer as qualifying illnesses. “On that day when first responders arrived, the air was toxic and remained toxic for many months afterwards,” said James Lemonda, president of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association.

The Fire Department of New York lost 343 firefighters on 9/11.

Published in Dawn, September 27th , 2014