Posted on: Friday, May 31, 2002

A new day breaks for Ground Zero

Clasping the last girder of the fallen World Trade Center and an empty stretcher draped with a folded flag, firefighters, police officers and emergency workers solemnly emerged yesterday from Ground Zero's dark, gaping "pit."

The ceremony, which started at the precise time (10:29 a.m. EDT) that the second tower collapsed on Sept. 11, marked the end of the recovery effort following the bloodiest terrorist attack ever on American soil.

For its small part, Hawai'i sent scores of white and purple lei to pay tribute to the deceased and their families, and the emergency and rescue workers who, despite their best efforts, could not find the remains of more than 1,700 casualties.

But yesterday's ceremony also indicates that New York officials and business leaders are ready to move forward with a rebuilding effort. The burning question is, what do you erect over a 16-acre funeral pyre that is also prime Manhattan real estate?

Some New Yorkers want the towers rebuilt to thumb their noses at the terrorists. Others would prefer the area be reserved for spiritual rather than commercial activity.

We hope that whatever they finally decide to erect at the World Trade Center plaza not erase the horror and the heroism, the destruction and the selfless giving. That land is now sacred ground.