President Mary McAleese today laid a wreath at Ground Zero in New York.
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An aerial view of Ground Zero Photo: Reuters
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At 10.30 a.m. (3.30 p.m. Irish time) Mrs McAleese laid the wreath in memory of the 2,830 people who died in the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11th.
Following this, the President visited an almost-completed Irish Famine Memorial in Battery Park. It had been due to be opened this week but work was delayed by the September 11th attacks and it will not now be ready until mid-June.
Meanwhile, the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Councillor Michael Mulcahy, met members of Dublin Fire Brigade in advance of their visit to New York for the St Patrick’s day festivities and to pay their respects to the firemen who died at the World Trade Center.
During the visit, Dublin’s Chief Fire Officer, Mr Michael Walsh, will unveil a memorial plaque at the New York City Fire Department. The plaque was commissioned by Cllr Mulcahy as a token of esteem and respect for the City of New York and in particular for the 343 firefighters who lost their lives on September 11th.
As part of the ‘Shoulder to Shoulder’ initiative taken by Cllr Mulcahy, 105 New York firemen and policemen who were involved in rescue work on September 11th will visit Dublin in early May.
A fund-raising Gaelic Football match will be played on May 26th in New York between firemen from there and Dublin for the Lord Mayor’s cup.
