Western New Yorkers who responded to Ground Zero will never forget

Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - When America was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, Western New Yorkers were among those quick to respond in any way they could.

Dr. Steve MacMartin, director of the Hilbert College Cybersecurity program, spent three decades in the Department of Homeland Security. In 2001, he was sent to Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan.

"I was sent to Ground Zero at the beginning of October, and I worked there until after Thanksgiving," MacMartin told WBEN on the 25th anniversary of the attacks on Friday. "I went back down in February [of 2002], and worked at Ground Zero and at Freshkills in Staten Island, which is the landfill the debris from 9/11 was buried."

MacMartin was part of a massive recovery effort, aimed at identifying any human remains they could in order to give families closure. He recalled what the scene was like, even weeks after the attack on New York City.

"The destruction was incredible," MacMartin said. "It was like something out of a dystopian future movie scene. The smell was awful, just something you couldn't get out of your nostrils or your clothes."

Even with the knowledge he has now of how toxic the materials he and other first responders were sifting through were - and the health issues they have since caused - everyone MacMartin knows would have responded and went to Ground Zero just the same.

"Now that I look back, it was something amazing to have participated in," MacMartin said.