By Sally Goldenberg and Nina Agrawal, Sept. 7, 2026

In the harrowing months that followed the attacks on the World Trade Center, New Yorkers were repeatedly assured that the air around the fallen towers was safe to breathe.

But 10 months later, health officials were still finding evidence of asbestos as much as half a mile away, according to a sample of air quality records being released on Tuesday.

The documents, reviewed by The New York Times in advance of their release, include among more than 170,000 pages of air quality reports, contamination records and correspondence among city officials that were stored in 68 boxes in a city office, shielded from public view for more than two decades and, according to city officials, only discovered last year.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani has directed his administration to release the records to the public through an online portal, timing it to the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the attacks in Lower Manhattan.

Over the course of the next year, his administration intends to review, redact and publicize many more papers, found in municipal and insurance offices, that relate to the environmental toxins brought about by Sept. 11.

The records being released on Tuesday provide a snapshot of the frenzied months following the attacks, when New York City and its leaders were struggling to balance the city’s recovery with fears of terrorism and lingering toxins.

Read the full story here.

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