Legally Reviewed by Joseph P. Williams on June 9, 2026
No commercial construction project has shaped New York City’s identity — or its legacy of asbestos-related disease — quite like the original World Trade Center complex. While the September 11th attacks dominate the narrative, the health consequences for workers who built the Twin Towers between 1966 and 1973, and for the hundreds of thousands exposed when the towers fell, continue to unfold today. Mesothelioma has a latency period of 20 to 60 years, meaning the worst of the WTC exposure-related diagnoses may still lie ahead.
At The Williams Law Firm, P.C., New York asbestos attorney Joseph P. Williams has represented construction workers, first responders, and families throughout the city who were exposed to asbestos at the World Trade Center site during construction, the collapse, and the cleanup. If you or a family member has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease connected to the World Trade Center, you may be entitled to substantial compensation. Contact us today for a free consultation — no fees unless we win.
The Twin Towers were constructed during the peak era of asbestos use in commercial construction. Asbestos was standard in structural fireproofing, pipe insulation, floor tiles, ceiling tiles, and joint compound throughout American commercial construction from the 1940s through the mid-1970s. For the World Trade Center specifically, a spray-on mixture containing approximately 20 percent asbestos was applied to steel beams as fireproofing on the lower floors of the North Tower. Construction records show this spray covered approximately the first 40 floors before the Port Authority halted its use due to emerging concerns about asbestos health hazards.
By the time construction was complete, the North Tower alone contained an estimated 300 to 400 tons of asbestos. Total asbestos across the entire World Trade Center complex — including surrounding buildings — reached estimates as high as 2,000 tons. Asbestos-containing materials were present in floor tile adhesives, ceiling systems, mechanical insulation, pipe covering, and the spray-on fireproofing throughout the complex.
Thousands of building and construction tradespeople worked on the World Trade Center complex throughout its construction from 1966 to 1973 and during subsequent maintenance and renovation work over the following decades. Workers in the following trades faced elevated asbestos exposure risk at the site:
Many of these workers were members of New York unions whose members Attorney Williams has represented throughout his career. If you worked at the World Trade Center in any construction or maintenance capacity before September 11, 2001, you should inform your doctor of that exposure history.
When the North Tower collapsed on the morning of September 11, 2001, it released an estimated 400 tons of pulverized asbestos and other hazardous materials into the air over lower Manhattan. The toxic dust cloud contained asbestos fibers, silica, pulverized concrete, glass fibers, heavy metals including lead and mercury, benzene, dioxins, and cellulose from disintegrated paper. This cloud blanketed lower Manhattan and affected an estimated 410,000 to 525,000 people, including rescue workers, recovery crews, survivors, residents, and workers in surrounding buildings.
According to the CDC’s World Trade Center Health Program, the fires at Ground Zero continued to smolder until December 14, 2001 — more than three months after the attacks — exposing rescue and recovery workers to sustained toxic emissions throughout that period. A 2011 study in The Lancet found that firefighters exposed to the WTC dust are 19 percent more likely to develop cancer than the general population.
The World Trade Center Health Registry, which tracks the health effects of 9/11 dust exposure, had certified conditions among more than 132,530 responders and survivors as of early 2025. The data reveals the ongoing scale of this public health crisis:
The 10 most common 9/11-related cancers certified by the program include lung cancer, prostate cancer, thyroid cancer, kidney cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, melanoma, and nonmelanoma skin cancer. Mesothelioma cases related to WTC exposure have been documented, and experts expect the number to increase significantly over the next 20 to 40 years as the full latency period plays out.
Mesothelioma has a latency period of 20 to 60 years between asbestos exposure and diagnosis. This means that construction workers who built the Twin Towers from 1966 to 1973, and first responders who worked at Ground Zero in 2001, are both still within the window for mesothelioma diagnoses today. Dr. Raja Flores of Mount Sinai Hospital, one of the country’s foremost mesothelioma experts, has stated that a significant rise in WTC-related mesothelioma cases is expected in the coming decades.
In 2020, first responder and firefighter Nick Ursta died of pleural mesothelioma. In 2006, paramedic Deborah Reeve died of mesothelioma at age 41, diagnosed after developing severe symptoms following her work at Ground Zero. These cases represent early examples of what experts expect to become a larger pattern of WTC-related mesothelioma diagnoses over the next 20 to 40 years.
Two main legal pathways are available to workers and first responders diagnosed with mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases connected to World Trade Center exposure.
The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund provides compensation to individuals who were present at the WTC site, the Pentagon site, or the Shanksville, Pennsylvania crash site and have been diagnosed with a covered condition, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and a range of cancers and respiratory diseases. The VCF was permanently authorized by the Never Forget the Heroes Act and does not have a filing deadline for new applicants who are later diagnosed. Claims may be filed at any time after a diagnosis of a covered condition, even decades after the original exposure.
Construction workers who helped build the original World Trade Center complex may pursue civil litigation against the manufacturers of the asbestos-containing products used in the building’s construction, as well as claims against the more than 60 active asbestos trust funds established by bankrupt manufacturers. These claims are separate from the VCF and may be pursued simultaneously. In New York, the statute of limitations for mesothelioma personal injury claims is three years from the date of diagnosis.
Attorney Joseph P. Williams has spent his entire 30-year career representing New York construction workers, union members, and families harmed by asbestos exposure, including those connected to the World Trade Center. He has never lost a mesothelioma case and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for clients from Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, and across the country. He handles all cases on a contingency fee basis and will come to your home for the initial consultation. Reach out through our contact form to schedule a free consultation today.
The North Tower alone contained an estimated 300 to 400 tons of asbestos, primarily in spray-on fireproofing applied to the first 40 floors of the building during construction. Total asbestos across the entire World Trade Center complex has been estimated at up to 2,000 tons. When the towers collapsed on September 11, 2001, an estimated 400 tons of pulverized asbestos was released into the air over lower Manhattan as part of a toxic dust cloud that affected an estimated 410,000 to 525,000 people.
Yes. Construction workers who helped build the original World Trade Center from 1966 to 1973 may still file civil litigation claims against the manufacturers of asbestos-containing products used in the building’s construction, as well as claims against asbestos trust funds. In New York, the statute of limitations for mesothelioma personal injury claims is three years from the date of diagnosis, not from the date of the original exposure. Given mesothelioma’s 20 to 60 year latency period, workers exposed during construction are still within the filing window if recently diagnosed.
The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund is a federal program that provides compensation to individuals who were present at the WTC site and have been diagnosed with a covered illness, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, and dozens of other cancers and respiratory diseases. The fund was permanently authorized by the Never Forget the Heroes Act. There is no filing deadline — claims may be filed at any time after a covered condition is diagnosed, even decades after the original 9/11 exposure.
Mesothelioma has a latency period of 20 to 60 years between asbestos exposure and diagnosis. This means construction workers who built the Twin Towers in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and first responders who worked at Ground Zero in 2001, are both currently in the window where diagnoses would be expected. Medical experts anticipate a significant increase in WTC-related mesothelioma cases over the next 20 to 40 years as the full latency period plays out for those exposed during the 2001 collapse and cleanup.
In many cases, yes. Construction workers who built the original Twin Towers may be able to pursue civil litigation against asbestos product manufacturers and asbestos trust fund claims simultaneously with or separately from a September 11th Victim Compensation Fund claim, depending on the nature and timing of their exposure. First responders and recovery workers whose exposure was primarily from the 2001 collapse typically pursue VCF claims. An experienced asbestos attorney can evaluate your specific exposure history and identify all available avenues of compensation.
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