Bossip Video

Woman Made Famous After 9/11 Photo Of Her Emerging From South Tower As It Collapsed Dies At 42

We will never forget the attacks of September 11th and we wanted to remember Macy Borders, who passed away just short of the 14th anniversary.

According to NY Daily News reports:

Marcy Borders, the woman who became known as the “Dust Lady” from the iconic 9/11 image taken of her, dazed and covered in ash, after the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed, has died of stomach cancer, according to her family. She was 42.

“I can’t believe my sister is gone,” Borders’ brother Michael Borders wrote on Facebook of her death Monday. The mother of two was a native and lifelong resident of Bayonne, N.J. She was diagnosed with cancer last August and had been undergoing treatments, according to NJ.com.

Borders was working as a legal assistant for Bank of America on Sept. 11, 2001. Her office was on the 81st floor of 1 World Trade Center when terrorists attacked the twin towers with a pair of commercial airplanes. Then 28, Borders forced her way down the stairwell to the street and stepped onto the sidewalk just as the south tower began to fall. A stranger pulled her into the lobby of a nearby building as the other tower began to tumble, and photographer Stan Honda snapped a photograph.

The ghostly shot of Borders, dust-caked and stunned, became one of the most vivid images of the terrible tragedy that took more than 2,900 innocent lives. Borders was haunted by her experiences on 9/11, struggling with addiction and depression for more than a decade. In 2011, she checked into rehab and remained sober, she told The Jersey Journal last year.

When she was diagnosed with cancer, Borders openly questioned if it was related to 9/11. “I’m saying to myself ‘Did this thing ignite cancer cells in me?’” she said to The Jersey Journal. “I definitely believe it because I haven’t had any illnesses. I don’t have high blood pressure . . . high cholesterol, diabetes.”

Damn… This is so sad. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family.

APImages/GettyImages/StanHonda

Comments

Bossip Comment Policy
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.