Nassau Pays Tribute To Sept. 11 Victims, Honors First Responders

EAST MEADOW, NY — On Thursday, Nassau County paid tribute to the residents whose lives were lost on Sept. 11, 2001, as well as those who have died since from 9/11-related illnesses.

The 20th Anniversary Remembrance and Recitation of Names Ceremony was hosted by Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. In addition to the normal ceremony, the county also unveiled a new memorial that honors the first responders who have died from illnesses they contracted while working at ground zero.

“The passage of time will not dim the memory of that day or weaken the spirit of our residents and 9/11 heroes," Curran said. "Twenty years later, we honor the bravery of first responders and everyday New Yorkers who put their lives on the line to save others, and remember those taken from us too soon. We will never forget.”

The new memorial is a 6,500-pound red granite monument built next to the county's existing 9/11 memorial, which is one of the largest completed memorials to 9/11 victims in the country. The memorial sits on the lakeside at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow.

Curran was joined by Laine Alvarez, wife of the late NYPD Bomb Squad Detective Luis Alvarez, and leading champion for Victim Compensation Benefits Fund, for the unveiling of the new monument. Luis Alvarez, an Oceanside resident, died in 2019 from cancer he contracted from working at ground zero.

“The Nassau County 9/11 Memorial is a solemn reminder of the thousands of individuals that lost their lives during the terrorist attack twenty years ago in which Nassau County lost 348 of its residents," said Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder. "Let us never forget the past and always remember our heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice after the attack and those who still perish from 9/11 related illnesses.”