20 years after the 9/11 terror attacks, almost 40% of victims who perished in the Twin Towers have not been identified.
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Despite the best efforts of the New York City Medical Examiner’s office, more than 1100 victims remain unnamed.
Using DNA analysis, forensic scientists have continued the painstaking process of identification, but the fires and the subsequent collapse of the towers have left them with little to work with. Samples authorities were able to recover are mostly bone fragments which are difficult to work with.
"They’ve been continuously working on it for 20 years," said Professor Mike Marciano, director of research at Syracuse University Forensic and National Security Sciences Institute. He explained that DNA analysis is only as reliable as the sample being analyzed.
"The heat that was in the rubble at the world trade center caused the DNA to degrade," Marciano told KCBS Radio.
Marciano said no one knows when, or if, everyone will be positively identified, but recent DNA technology may give medical examiners a better chance. Using this development, scientists were recently able to identify two more victims, bringing some closure to their families.
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