More than 6,300 missing, presumed dead at World Trade Center

By LARRY McSHANE

Associated Press

NEW YORK – The number of missing and presumed dead at the World Trade Center climbed to 6,333 Thursday with the addition of victims from other countries.

The number of missing had been at 5,422 for several days.

Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said the higher number reflects reports of foreigners believed to be in the ruins left after two hijacked planes crashed into the two towers Sept. 11.

According to the mayor, the British consulate reported that 250 of its citizens were among the missing. He did not provide other numbers, but more than 40 nations are believed to have victims in the rubble.

Giuliani has said it is virtually certain that no one will be found alive.

Earlier Thursday, British Prime Minister Tony Blair attended a church service for British victims of the tragedy.

“The bonds between our countries, for so long so strong, are even stronger now,” Blair told the gathering.

The bodies of 241 people have been recovered so far. Of those, 170 have been identified by the coroner. The mayor also said 6,291 people were injured in the attack.

Earlier Thursday, with the small steps of children walking back into schools and the sounds of traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge, lower Manhattan edged closer to normal.

But at ground zero, where two of the world’s tallest buildings were demolished by terrorists, rescue workers hunting survivors toiled in vain. A delegation of 40 U.S. senators toured the World Trade Center site for a firsthand look at the devastation.

Giuliani acknowledged that the combination of the 2,000-degree fire caused by the explosion of two hijacked planes and the implosion of the 110-story towers make it likely that some victims’ bodies will never be recovered.

“Even weeks ahead, while we’re removing stuff, obviously we’re going to be looking,” Giuliani said. “Right now, the possibility still remains. They’re slim, but they still remain.”

Still, the curtain of sadness that had enveloped the city since the attacks parted a bit Thursday, as thousands of students who were driven from their classrooms near the World Trade Center by the attack went back to school.

But not back to their own schools, which remain closed. Instead, they moved into other schools around the city, a tight squeeze but not an unhappy one.

“I’m excited to be back,” said kindergartner Jason Brilliant as he arrived at Public School 3 in Greenwich Village. “It was a long time because the World Trade Center went ‘boom.’ “

Parents exchanged hugs and smiles outside the school’s red doors.

“The kids were amazing,” said teacher Julie Hiraga, who clutched the hands of two students as they ran for safety last week.

The Brooklyn Bridge – a pathway to safety for thousands as they fled the collapsing Trade Center – reopened two Manhattan-bound lanes to automobile traffic for the first time since the attack. The Holland Tunnel could reopen next week, Port Authority officials said.

A delegation of 40 U.S. senators, led by Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Minority Leader Trent Lott, toured the Trade Center site for a look at the ruins left by the worst terrorist attack ever on American soil.

“We support you,” said Daschle, D-S.D. “We’re here because we recognize this loss must be shared not only by New Yorkers, but by all Americans.”

The group pledged to help the city recover and rebuild from the attack. Last week, Congress voted a $40 billion appropriation to help New York. The Bush administration has pledged to cover all the costs of the massive cleanup.

“I’ve never seen anything comparable to what we’ve seen here today, the magnitude of it,” said Lott, R-Miss. “It’s so important that we come and see what we’re dealing with.”

Larry Silverstein, leader of a consortium that took over a 99-year, $3.2 billion lease on the complex in July, said Thursday he intends to rebuild – but not “a carbon copy of what was.” Instead, he may construct four 50-story buildings.

At least 30 people remained hospitalized at five Manhattan hospitals that saw the majority of patients following the attack.

Twenty Manhattan hospitals treated people that day, said Mary Johnson of the Greater New York Hospital Association. All in all, 83 hospitals in the five boroughs and the suburban counties of Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk treated 5,284 people, Johnson said. Of them, 418 were admitted.

Some residents were allowed into Battery Park City on Thursday for the first time since the attack. They were allowed just 15 minutes. Most emptied refrigerators of spoiled food and packed precious items into a suitcase or two.

When will they be allowed back to their homes?

“You can ask five different people, you get five different answers,” said Jay Jaffe, 34, an equity trader who lugged some of his possessions through the rain.