The stays of a person killed on the World Commerce Middle throughout the 9/11 assaults have been recognized greater than 20 years later after a DNA breakthrough.
John Ballantine Niven, of Oyster Bay, Lengthy Island, has been positively recognized, the New York Metropolis medical expert’s workplace introduced Thursday.
The 44-year-old was an government at Aon Threat Providers, an insurance coverage agency on the a hundred and fifth ground of tower two of the commerce heart advanced, when hijackers carried out the deadliest act of terrorism on American soil in historical past on Sept. 11, 2001.
His spouse Ellen Niven and son Jack say they’re grateful for the ‘extraordinary efforts’ of metropolis officers persevering with the tough process of figuring out victims’ stays.
The medical expert’s workplace has been utilizing superior DNA evaluation to establish stays in recent times, however roughly 40 per cent of victims have nonetheless not been linked to their stays.
Niven is the 1,650th sufferer recognized from assault which noticed hijackers crash airplanes into the Twin Towers, killing 2,753 individuals.
The stays of John Ballantine Niven, (pictured) of Oyster Bay, Lengthy Island, have positively recognized, the New York Metropolis medical expert’s workplace introduced Thursday. He was killed on the World Commerce Middle throughout the 9/11 assaults
The 44-year-old left behind his spouse Ellen, not pictured, and 18-month-old son Jack. The picture above, shared together with his obituary, is believed to be of Niven holding Jack. Niven was recognized to have ‘carried his son in every single place’
‘It’s definitely emotional for me, and I am certain many others, to listen to a few years later that DNA has been discovered,’ Mrs Niven wrote Thursday in an e-mail to the Related Press.
‘It is an actual tribute to the Metropolis of New York and the groups working behind the scenes all these years to honor that mantra “By no means Overlook.”
‘My son and I are so appreciative of this super endeavor. ‘
Niven and his household had cut up time between Manhattan and Oyster Bay, the place he grew up, in response to obituaries on the time. He would typically play tennis within the space with buddies from his childhood.
He loved studying about historical past and philosophy and prioritized time together with his son Jack, who was simply 18 months previous when his father died.
Niven’s obituary revealed how he ‘carried his son in every single place, taking him alongside to scrub the automobile or go for a dip within the pool’. He would additionally ‘hunker down together with his son’s toy vehicles’.
Roughly 40 % of victims of the World Commerce Middle assault have but to have their stays recognized, as few full our bodies have been recovered when the enormous towers collapsed. Crews are pictured sifting by the wreckage at Floor Zero on September 13, 2001
Firefighters work beneath the destroyed mullions, the vertical struts which as soon as confronted the hovering outer partitions of the World Commerce Middle towers, after the 9/11 terrorist assaults
The younger household had vacationed within the British Virgin Islands simply weeks earlier than he was killed within the assaults. After his dying, Mrs Niven stated: ‘He would say that though his life was quick, he was actually blessed within the years he had.’
New York Metropolis Mayor Eric Adams issued a press release on Thursday after Niven’s stays have been recognized.
He stated: ‘Whereas the ache from the big losses on September eleventh by no means leaves us, the opportunity of new identifications can supply solace to the households of victims.
‘I am grateful for the continuing work from the Workplace of Chief Medical Examiner that honors the reminiscence of John Ballantine Niven and all these we misplaced.’
‘We’ll eternally bear in mind our heroes who perished on 9/11 and we admire the continual efforts of forensic consultants to assist establish victims,’ Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino stated in a separate assertion.
‘We’re hopeful that this superb advance in expertise helps carry peace to Mr. Niven’s household and permits him to eternally relaxation in peace.’
Niven is the 1,650th sufferer recognized from the deadliest act of terrorism on American soil, when hijackers crashed airplanes into the Twin Towers (pictured) and killed 2,753 individuals
Roughly 40 % of victims of the World Commerce Middle assault have but to have their stays recognized, as few full our bodies have been recovered when the enormous towers collapsed.
However as DNA testing has advanced, so have efforts to attach greater than 21,900 stays to particular person victims. In some circumstances, scientists have gone again to the identical items 10 or extra instances, hoping new expertise will present solutions.
Forward of the anniversary of the assaults final September, the workplace recognized the stays of a person and a lady, although their names weren’t made public on the request of their households.
The 9/11 assaults killed practically 3,000 individuals in New York, on the Pentagon and close to Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
