8 officers who died of post-9/11 illness on NYPD memorial

By TOM HAYS | Associated Press Writer

May 7, 2008

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NEW YORK - More than two years after he took his last breath, James Zadroga was finally added to the NYPD's wall of heroes.

The detective who developed lung disease after spending hundreds of hours toiling in the World Trade Center's ruins was one of eight officers who died of post-Sept. 11 illness added to the department's memorial wall.

Three other officers killed in the line of duty last year were also added to the wall _ their names engraved onto bronze plaques in the lobby of police headquarters. But Zadroga and seven others, including an officer who died in 2004, became the first NYPD members to be memorialized for dying of illnesses they blame on the dust they breathed at ground zero.

"It gives a just honor to Jimmy and to the other officers who worked that day and the days that followed," said Joseph Zadroga, James Zadroga's father, at Wednesday's ceremony.

Zadroga, 34, worked hundreds of hours at ground zero beginning Sept. 11, 2001. He soon developed respiratory ailments and died in January 2006 of lung disease.

He became a symbol of ailing ground zero workers after a New Jersey autopsy concluded his death was caused by exposure to Sept. 11 dust. The family sought to add him to the Sept. 11 victims' list, but the city medical examiner said no, concluding the improper use of prescription drugs contributed to Zadroga's lung disease.

"I just hope that maybe they won't forget now," said Joseph Zadroga, who still wants his son's name listed on the Sept. 11 memorial.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg apologized to Zadroga's family last year for saying Zadroga was "not a hero." On Wednesday, he said of the officers: "All 11 of these men put themselves in harm's way to protect us."

"Their names are forever inscribed in the hearts of those who knew them. And today, they will also be inscribed on the Wall of Heroes here at One Police Plaza, so that future generations will know of their courage and sacrifice," he said.

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the NYPD members who became ill after working at ground zero "are being appropriately recognized" on the memorial wall. "I am very happy that we were able to put their names on the wall of honor today," he said.

Other officers recognized for their deaths of 9/11-related illnesses include James Godbee, an officer who died in 2004 of lung disease after working at the trade center site; Robert Williamson, a detective who died of pancreatic cancer a year ago; Det. Kevin G. Hawkins, Det. John T. Young, Officer Angelo Peluso, Officer Ronald E. Weintraub and Officer Thomas G. Brophy.

Also named to the wall was Russel Timoshenko, a detective shot to death on July 14 during a traffic stop in Brooklyn, and auxiliary police officers Eugene Marshalik and Nicholas T. Pekearo, killed in March 2007 while pursuing a murder suspect in downtown Manhattan.