Sikeston man honored for his Sept. 11 efforts

SIKESTON, Mo. — After 22 years, a Sikeston resident was honored as a Federal Bureau of Investigation first responder to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks during an event at the New York Police Department headquarters in New York City, along with other FBI 9/11 first responders from across the country.

Marty Williams was honored Sept. 26 for his service in New York following 9/11. Williams said between 3,200 and 4,000 agents were deployed over the course of eight months following the attacks. Williams and many other agents were among those who developed some form of illness as a result of being exposed to the 9/11 debris.

According to Williams, the NYPD wanted to honor the sacrifice of the agents who died as a result of toxic exposure from 9/11 debris, as well as those who were still alive but had developed some type of illness or cancer as a result of the toxic exposure while serving.

Williams said two FBI agents were killed on 9/11 in New York City, whereas 19 FBI agents have died since then due to toxic exposure.

Approximately 350 agents were honored at the ceremony, and those who died were also honored and recognized.

Christopher Wray, the FBI's director, attended the ceremony and presented each agent with a medallion and a lapel pin.

Williams worked for the FBI for 23 years and said one of his most important duties was being part of an evidence recovery team.

During 9/11, Williams was stationed out of the Indianapolis FBI division, and after the attacks, multiple evidence recovery teams were deployed to Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania and New York City for remains' recovery.

Ground Zero debris and remains were moved to Staten Island's defunct "Fresh Kills" landfill and turned into a forensic site, where Williams and his team were deployed.

"What we basically did was go through all of the debris, looking for various human remains," Williams said.

According to Williams, once something was discovered and attempted to be identified, it was taken to a trailer where anthropologists and other forensic medical professionals would recover it, label it and extract a DNA sample from it.

"They also had an area set up where people were coming to give DNA to match up to their loved ones who had not been identified yet," Williams said. "Those who were relatives would give a DNA oral swab. If looking for someone who was a friend, they would bring a belonging from that person's home where DNA would have been discarded on it, such as a toothbrush or piece of clothing, to see if it would match up with one of the remains."

After 22 years, Williams said it felt good to be recognized, but what was more significant was spending time with other agents who were going through the same things.

"I think the most important thing about the ceremony was us recognizing the agents who have passed on because of the efforts that they put forth at those various places," Williams said.

Williams said even though the many agents are now suffering from numerous illnesses as a result of their service, they don't regret it and would do it all over again.