Possible human remains found during search of World Trade Center debris

GlobalPost

Possible human remains from two victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center were discovered on Monday, the City of New York's Medical Examiner said.

The Examiner's office confirmed the finding to CBSNewYork but did not specify what type of remains were found.

On Friday, the city announced it was starting a new 10-week search for human remains that were previously uncovered after the 2001 terrorist attack.

"We will continue DNA testing until all recovered remains that can be matched with a victim are identified," Deputy Mayor Cas Holloway said in a memo to Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Truckloads of debris that could contain fragments of human remains is being transported to a park that sits atop the former Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island.

Dozens of bone and tissue fragments have turned up in recent years as construction crews continue work on the new World Trade Center towers.

"We have been monitoring the World Trade Center site over time and monitoring the construction," Ellen Borakove, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner's office told the Associated Press.

"And if they see any material that could possibly contain human remains, we collect that material."

Thousands of tiny pieces of human remains recovered from the ruins of the World Trade Center remain unidentified because their DNA is too damaged to be positively matched to victims. 

Since 2006, investigators have used DNA to identify the remains of 34 previously  unrecovered victims.

So far the Examiner's office has identified 1,634 out of 2,752 people who were killed in the attacks, which means more than 1,000 families have yet to find remains of their loved ones.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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