Union cites 1st death tied to 9/11 cleanup

AP

NEW YORK — A retired, 34-year-old New York City police detective who spent hundreds of hours searching for Sept. 11 victims at Ground Zero has died of a respiratory disease related to the cleanup, union officials said.

James Zadroga is thought to be the first emergency responder to die as a result of exposure to World Trade Center dust and debris, said Michael Palladino, president of the Detectives’ Endowment Association.

“Unfortunately, I do not think he is going to be the last,” Palladino said Saturday.

Zadroga died Thursday at his home in Little Egg Harbor, N.J., officials said. Results of an autopsy were pending.

Zadroga had developed black lung disease and mercury on the brain as a result of working at Ground Zero, Palladino said. Palladino said Zadroga had worked up to 16 hours a day the first month after the collapse of the towers.

He developed respiratory problems in the months after the attacks and retired on disability in 2004. Zadroga, a 13-year veteran of the force, had a 4-year-old daughter.