The remains of a Long Island man killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11 have been identified more than 20 years after the 2001 attacks, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office announced Thursday.
John Ballantine Niven was a 44-year-old executive at Aon Risk Services, an insurance company located on the 105th floor of Tower 2 of the Trade Center complex, according to an obituary at the time. He and his young family split their time between Manhattan and Oyster Bay, where he grew up.
His wife, Ellen Niven, said Thursday that she and their son, Jack, who was 18 months old when his father died, are grateful to city officials for their “extraordinary efforts” as they continue the difficult task of identifying the victims' bodies. He said he was grateful for his efforts.
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“It is certainly emotional for me and many others to hear that the DNA has been discovered after so many years,” she wrote in an email. “This is a true tribute to New York City and the team that has worked behind the scenes for many years to honor its mantra of 'never forget.' My son and I are so grateful for this incredible effort.”
Niven is the 1,650th confirmed victim in the deadliest terrorist act on American soil, when hijackers crashed a plane into the Twin Towers, killing 2,753 people.
The original World Trade Center in this July 2000 file photo. (Albert L. Ortega/WireImage)
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement: “The pain of the enormous losses of September 11th will never leave us, but the possibility of new identifications could bring comfort to the families of the victims. There is a gender,” he said. “We are grateful for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner’s continued efforts to honor the memory of John Ballantyne Niven and all those we have lost.”
In recent years, the medical examiner's office has used advanced DNA analysis to identify victims' bodies.
Ahead of the anniversary of the attacks last September, the office identified the bodies of a man and a woman, but their names were not released at the request of their families.
“We will always remember the heroes who died on 9/11 and thank the forensic experts for their continued efforts to help identify the victims,” Oyster Bay Superintendent Joseph Saladino said in a separate statement. “I will.” “We hope that this amazing technological advancement will bring peace to Niven's family so that he can rest in peace forever.”
Approximately 40 percent of the victims of the World Trade Center attacks still have unidentified bodies because so few whole bodies were recovered when the giant towers collapsed.
But as DNA testing has evolved, so have efforts to link the more than 21,900 remains to individual victims. In some cases, the scientist investigated the same area more than 10 times, hoping that new technology would provide an answer.
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The 9/11 attacks killed nearly 3,000 people at the Pentagon in New York and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
