The biggest problem was that it was pulverized building materials that wind up having a very high alkalinity — almost like lye, all right, or Drano — that when you inhale it or swallow it, it's burning your entire nose and airway and stomach.

Today marks the fifth anniversary of 9/11, a tragedy that is finally also being recognized for its continuing health effects. Beyond the immediate casualties that occurred on that fateful day, there is no more denying that the ensuing debris, smoke, chemicals, and fires were more than a mere nuisance, or a temporary inconvenience—whether for surviving civilians or rescue personnel. Indeed, despite the Environmental Protection Agency's shocking nonchalance over the whole matter, its initial nothing-to-see-here-move-along posture, there is, sad to say, a real problem concerning fallout from this unprecedented event.