Clean up work at the site of the World Trade Center is tough enough without having to rinse off safety glasses and face masks outside in freezing winter weather.
Both the Environmental Protection Agency and the city of New York realize that workers need a warm, dry place to rinse off equipment, grab a meal and change clothes, so today, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Christie Whitman and New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani unveiled EPA''s new indoor wash station at ground zero. Today is the three-month anniversary of the attacks.
Workers doing removal and recovery at the debris pile of the World Trade Center during the winter months - including thousands of city, state and federal employees, volunteers and contractors - will use this state-of-the art facility until spring.
The new 31,000 square foot indoor wash station at West and Warren streets features boot and mask wash areas, HEPA vacuums for dusty clothing, 30 shower stalls, men''s and women''s locker areas, Salvation Army hot and cold food stations, and American Red Cross disaster mental health counseling. As many as 6,000 workers use the facility every day.
Whitman christened the facility by rinsing boots at the boot wash.
by Sandy Smith ([email protected])